Break my Fall
by Firefly Fairy In A Bottle
Summary: Green is used. Red is invisible. Blue is judged. Vio is anti-social. And Shadow is new. AU, GreenXZelda, RedXBlue, and VioXShadow. Now has a TV Tropes page; go check it out.
1. Green ll Scary

1 "God, could Saria get anymore annoying?" Vaati says, a tinge of irritation in his voice.

"What do you mean?" Green replies. "I've been in school with Saria since third grade. I never thought she was annoying."

Vaati looks at Green, slightly offended, then lets out a huffy breath and points towards Saria, who's sitting and talking with Malon. "Well, just look at her." He glares at the two and frowns. "Such. A. Ditz."

Green looks. Saria's saying something, but Green can't hear her. She's smiling. Green always thought Saria was happy-go-lucky, but never a ditz.

"Yeah, I guess I see what you mean," Green says. Vaati tilts his head up a little in triumph. Sure, Green was lying, but that's just because he knows it's not safe to disagree with Vaati. If someone disagrees with, or defies him, Vaati will get back at them somehow.

Green also knows this is just Vaati's way of being himself. He knows Vaati can't _help _but be a bit cruel, because that's just the way he is. He's been this way ever since they met, and probably before that, too. And that's just the way Vaati is. Green is used to it. He doesn't care.

"Hey, Green," Vaati snaps his fingers into front of Green's face. "Hello. Earth to Green."

Green train of thought is broken, and he looks at Vaati with wide eyes. "What?"

"Oh, nothing. It's just really fun when your friend is _ignoring you._" Sarcasm. Another thing Vaati can't help but do. "Now snap outta it!" he snaps, almost making Green jump.

"Okay, okay," Green says, still a bit startled from Vaati's sudden outburst. He sighs. "You scared me."

"Well that's what I gotta do," Vaati says, walking ahead of Green. "Sometimes I just hafta break you outta whatever trance you're in." Green doesn't say anything- he's can't think of anything to say- but he starts walking again, quickening his steps to catch up to Vaati, who continues to ramble on.

"I mean, really, Green! Without me, you'd be staring off into space all day!" Green can't help but smile, because he doesn't necessarily think that's true. Vaati doesn't notice, and continues. "That's why you need me. I keep you on the ground." Green giggles. Vaati is so funny, without even knowing it. Vaati stops walking, turning to look at Green.

"What?" he demands. "What's so funny?" Green wants to burst out laughing, but he stops himself.

"Nothing..." he says, still walking. Since Vaati can't see him, he playfully rolls his eyes.

"Yeah, sure, whatever," Vaati grumbles, before following after Green, who has stopped to wait for him.

They walk in silence for a while before hearing a familiar voice.

"Hey, Green. Hi, Vaati," Green knows who it is before he even turns around. He would know that voice anywhere. Zelda stands behind them, messenger bag slung over her shoulder. Vaati turns around seconds after Green, though in all honesty, he doesn't look like he really cares. _He usually looks like that,_ Green thinks, only half reassuring himself. _He really cares deep down._

"Hey, Zelda," Green says, trying to keep his cool. He's had a crush on Zelda since grade school, and the two of them have been friends since who-knows-when. Still, Green finds himself paying attention to every little thing he says and does while he's with Zelda. It's just a habit.

"Good to see you," she says, keeping her eyes on Green. She doesn't once look towards Vaati, and if Green weren't so busy worrying about what to say, he would wonder why.

"Yeah... you too."

Zelda scans over the both of them curiously. "Where are you two headed off to?"

Green shrugs. "Nowhere in particular."

"We were just walking around, seeing what's changed," Vaati cuts in, steeping in front of Green.

"Yeah..." Zelda says, her eyes drifting away from the two. She looks back to Green and smiles. "Anyways, I'll see you third period," she says as she begins to walk away.

"And fifth," Green adds, waving goodbye.

As she walks away, Vaati looks at him strangely. When Green doesn't notice his friend's odd stare, Vaati speaks.

"You like her, don't you?"

Green flinches. His face turns red.

"And I don't mean as a friend, you know," Vaati explains, gazing at Green. Green quickly turns his head to look at him, but he doesn't really see him.

"W-well... I..." Green starts, but Vaati cuts him off.

"You don't have to say it. I can tell." He starts walking off in the other direction. Green just stares at the back of Vaati's head. That's all he really can do. Vaati knew? But how? It's not really _that_ obvious, is it? And if it is, then can Zelda tell, too? Green blush deepens at the thought. Well, Zelda _is _smart, but is she really smart enough to notice-

Vaati stops. He looks over his shoulder, glaring daggers at Green. He's given Green mean stares before, but never like this one. Greens cowers a bit, taking an unrealized step backwards.

"Look, I just know, okay?" he growls. He turns around the whole way and gives a shameless little smirk. "Besides, I know you better than anyone, don't I?" Green's eyes widen a little as Vaati says this, because he's wrong. Dead wrong. Usually it's funny when he's wrong, but now...

Green wants to say something- he's not quite sure what- but the bell for third period rings before he can. Vaati walks off, still smiling to himself. "I'll meet you at lunch, okay?" he calls without bothering to turn around.

"Okay..." Green says cautiously before walking in the direction of his next class. His steps are slow and shaky. He grips the straps of backpack tighter and swallows.

Vaati thinks he knows Green well, and it's funny how wrong he is, but it's so scary all at the same time.

**AN- Yay! New story! Yes, all the Links will play their important roles in this, but Green is first, of course. Anywho, maybe you could answer some questions for me?**

**1)- What do you think of Vaati so far?**

**2)- Am I portrayed Green/Zelda well? I don't write it often...**

**3)- Is Green being friends with Vaati too much of a stretch? I just viewed Green as being popular and then realized Vaati would be popular, too.**


	2. Red ll Loved

1_ It's that time again._

The bell for class rings and Red is seated at his desk in history class. He's surrounded by familiar faces. At least, they're familiar to him. As if they recognize him.

Red pouts and stares down at his desk. It's clean, aside from the little carving in the upper left corner, a heart with the letters "L+P" inside of it. He runs his fingers over it, feeling the dents in the wood. The teacher is talking, but he's only half listening. _Besides, it's the first day, what do I have to worry about missing?_

Red is naturally a sweet boy. He's nice, fun, and absolutely adorable! What more could you ask for? Probably a lot, because Red is on the verge of friendlessness. Actually, forget the verge, he's fallen off the cliff of friendlessness and into the pit of loneliness. Friends are out of his reach at this point. _They never were in reach in the first place._

Red looks around him. He bets he could name everyone in this class if he tried hard enough. He had gone to school with most of them for at least four years. He's seen their faces, heard their voices, knows who they're friends with, the rumors about them; he's practically an expect on the kids at this school. He can recite all of last year's gossip by heart- in fact, he has, when no one else was around in he was all alone in his room.

It's not that he doesn't want friends- he really does- it's just so hard for him to make them. Aside from his family, he has trouble talking to people. His heart beats, his face flushes, his palms get sweaty- he's a mess! He hates having people see him like that.

As he scans the room, reciting everyone's names in his head- _Ruto, Ralph, Fado_**(1)**_, (gulp) Vaati..._- he comes across someone he hasn't seen around before. This boy is sitting in the next row over, a few seats behind Red. He has deep, dark purple hair in a style almost identical to Red's own. _He has dark hair and tan skin- _Red notices-_ but he has blue eyes._ Blue eyes that are drifting in Red's direction.

Their eyes make contact for a second- just a split second- before Red turns his head away. He feels really embarrassed for staring, even more so for getting caught, but new kids don't come around too often. He wonders what it feels like, to have everyone be new to you, when, really, you're the new one in their eyes. _Would it be better or worse then what I have now?_

He turns his head back up to the teacher, letting out the slightest huffy exhale. What he wants- what he really wants most of all- is to wake up in the middle of the night hearing the sound of pebbles tap-tap-tapping his window. To open the window and find his (nonexistent, of course) friend standing outside waiting for him in the rain. He smiles a bit at the thought. Then to run outside in his pajamas and walk around town together, shielded by only a shared umbrella. _Perfect. But wait..._

With widened eyes and a sudden shock, Red realizes that maybe what he wanted all this time wasn't just friendship. Maybe it was something more than that. Or maybe...

_Maybe, just maybe, all this time I just wanted to be loved._

**AN- Yessss! Second chapter get! This was fairly simple to write, but it took forever 'cuz I kinda hit a rock on the feelings.**

**(1)- Fado from OOT, incase you're wondering. I'm considering giving her some little role in this story somehow.**

**Okay, question time!**

**4)- Did I make Red too gloomy?**

**5)- Do you see any hope in all this angst?**

**6)- More importantly, this angsty stuff isn't annoying, right?**


	3. Blue ll Glance

**AN- I just got a very nice review from someone I have crazy respect for and I was all like- "Omigod I need to write Blue's chapter NOW." So... yeah. YERBLUES99 YOU BETTER FREAKIN' ENJOY THIS. Pfft, JK. **

Blue sits at his desk and stares at the clock. Just 30 seconds until English class is over. It's not that he's looking forward to lunch, it's just that sitting here, listening to the teacher yapping is mindless torture. To put it simply, Blue hates school.

The bell rings, high and tingly. Blue grabs his bag and walks out of the classroom in no hurry. Why should he hurry? Have I not mentioned he has nothing to look forward to?

As he walks down the hallways, he notices everyone seems to be clearing a pathway for him. Not because they have respect for him. No, that's Vaati's thing. It's because they're avoiding him. Blue pretends to not care.

Now what exactly does "pretend" mean? To claim, to make believe, or to give a false show.

**(1)** Meaning, Blue gives off the idea that he doesn't care what other think- but the thing is, he does.

So Blue keeps roaming the halls, avoiding the stares of the teenagers surrounding him, avoiding the whispers, the rumors. Maybe the newest ones are true- yes, he did give a boy a black eye and a bloody nose during break; and yes, he was getting detention for it, a whole weeks worth- but some of them are just a load of crap. He'll pound all of these kids to the ground if any of them spread the rumor that he broke the boy's nose. But wait- that'll just give him more damn detention.

Blue grumbles to himself as he sits down on a small bench outside of the cafeteria. Other students are flooding the area, talking and laughing and eating and being so damn cheery. Everyone avoids the bench he's sitting at. Of course. Because no one wants to get involved with the school's resident bad boy.

Blue pulls out a brown paper bag out of his backpack- he packs his own lunch- and sets it down next to him. He looks around, glaring at anyone who dares to make eye contact with him. Because you know what? Just because he has violent tendencies, just because he has some anger issues, doesn't mean they should judge him and not give him half-a-stinking chance. He's seriously fed up with these people. Everyone here is so stuck up.

Or at least, that's what he's trying to make everyone think. In reality, he really just wants someone to see him as something other than the jerk. Something more than the bad boy. What he wants is for someone to realize he's not that bad. Of course, no way in hell would he tell anyone this, or admit it, but he's thinking it.

And sure, a lot of people here piss him off, but he doesn't completely hate them. Most of them have never done anything bad to him. But that probably just means most of these kids are too scared to do anything bad to him. They should be. Really, he does have some hope about the kids here, and any chance of someone seeing something more in him, but he ignores that hope and pushes it aside.

His eyes wander off in the direction of the other benches, however, something catches his eye. Or rather, someone.

A boy, blonde hair, blue eyes, is sitting alone on the courtyard steps, wearing a red jacket and jean shorts. He looks sad, Blue notices. In fact, he looks kind of like Blue. Even though Blue is sitting far away from him, he can tell that the boy's hair is shinier than his, and his eyes are more of a sky blue, while Blue's are, well, just plain blue. He knows from day after day of staring in the mirror on the bathroom door while his older sister takes forever in there. **(2)** He's probably shorter than him, too, but he can't know for sure.

The boy doesn't notice him staring. He must not be the kind of person who can feel others staring at him. Blue can feel when people stare, but he's just good at ignoring the ones who are staring.

He's kind of cute... Blue thinks. With sudden realization, he jumps at the thought. He did not just think that. Okay, maybe he did. But why? Inspecting the boy more closely, he notices that this boy has unusually large and shiny eyes. Unusually obnoxious large and shiny eyes.

Brushing the whole "cute" thought aside, Blue looks back down at his lunch bag. He sighs and begins to eat his lunch, though he can't help but sneak a glance at the red-clad boy every so often.

**AN- That was fun. I'm happy now. Two chapters in one day, woo! Did anyone notice the little RedXBlue plot element I threw in there~? If not, it'll be fully mentioned soon. Next is Vio's chapter, that's where the drama begins... *dun dun DUN***

**(1)- Yes, I actually looked up "pretend" in the dictionary for that bit.**

**(2)- I didn't want them to all be only children. I think I'll give Vio a little brother just to annoy him.**

**Oh, and just so you know, I'll only be swearing in Blue's chapters. And only minor swears, so don't you worry.**


	4. Vio ll Bookcase

Vio sits in his desk in science and turns the page in his book. It's sixth period already, and it feels as if the day has gone by so fast. Well, it is only the first day, but either way.

Vio is a straight A student, of course, and cares about nothing more than his grades. If he gets good grades, he can get into a good college, get a good job, and make enough money to take care of his family. That is, if he does get married. Falling in love _would_ get in the way of his studying...

Vio's train of thought stops. Someone is staring at him. He turns around, startled.

Standing behind him is a boy with purple hair and tan skin. He's wearing a black turtleneck and dark, ripped jeans. He cowers a bit as Vio turns around, burying his chin and mouth in his turtleneck, but never breaks eye contact. His eyes are dark blue. Vio feels like he should say something, but the words are getting caught in his throat. He has no idea why.

Finally, he breaks the silence. "Do you sit here?" he asks, motioning to the seat next to him. The boy's dark eyes widen a bit.

"Um, yeah," he says, sitting down next to Vio. He looks up at the white board in front of him and takes out a pencil. Vio just continues to stare at him. Vio hadn't seen this boy at school before. He would have remembered if he had. Is it possible this boy is new? It wasn't often they got fresh blood around here.

The boy notices Vio staring at him from the corner of his eye and turns to glare at him. "What?" he huffs, taking Vio by surprise. Just a moment ago, he was so reserved and unsure of himself.

"You're new, aren't you?" Vio says, with a bit of willpower he wasn't aware of.

The boy's cheeks redden, and his eyes dart away from Vio. "Yeah. So what?"

"We just don't have new people arrive that often, is all." Vio says, turning back to his book.

"My..." Vio turns to face the boy again. He hadn't expected him to speak. "My name's Shadow." he finishes.

"My name is Vio." Vio says, smiling. Shadow hesitantly smiles back. It seems they're each other's science partners.

After a few moments, the bell rings and class begins. That, however, doesn't matter. What matters is what's going to happen after class, or specifically to begin with, at the end of class.

Today, it being the first day of school, the teacher has extra time at the end of class to have the students socialize before the final bell rings. Vio, not to anyone's surprise, is reading.

"Um..." Vio turns his head from his book at the sound of the familiar voice. "So what can you tell me about the people at this school?" Shadow asks, fiddling with one of the tears on his jeans.

"Well," Vio begins, but ends up stopping short. He didn't really have any friends, nor did he talk to people much. What was he supposed to say? "I'm not quite sure. I'm not involved too much in all the stupid 'groups' here."

"'Groups?'" Shadow gasps, leaning forward in his seat. "That won't be a problem, will it? I mean, I'm new and all..."

"Yes and no. It all depends on which group you chose to get involved with." Vio thinks that over for a second, because really, despite the fact he's had only known Shadow for a mere hour and a half, he can't imagine him in any of the "groups" at this school. It just doesn't feel right, though Vio can't quite pinpoint why.

"What groups are there?" Shadow asks, and Vio can detect nervousness in his voice.

"It's... complicated," Vio says, not wanting to bother listing the many cliques of their high school. "You'll figure it out as you move along."

As he finishes speaking, the bell rings, and students scurry from their seats to the door, eager to go home. Vio slowly rises from his seat, retrieving his backpack from under the table. Shadow picks up his messenger bag and takes a few quick steps to catch up to Vio.

"Um... so you're going home now, right?" Vio glances at him, raising an eyebrow. What an odd question.

"No, actually. I go to the library after school most days. Why do you ask?"

"Well, my mom is working late, so she's not picking me up until four." Shadow pauses for the moment as the pair walk in silence. "Can I go with you?"

Vio's pulse almost stops. No one has ever asked him that before, and usually, if they had, Vio would have politely refused and moved on. For some reason, this is different. It doesn't take him long to ponder it.

"Sure, why not?" Vio shrugs, ignoring his heartbeat, returning fast and strong.

They walk together in silence until reaching the library. The library is mostly empty, apart from a few people, first being the girl working at the counter. She waves to Vio as he walks in with Shadow. Vio gives the slightest wave back. "So who's your friend, Vio?" she asks.

"This is Shadow," Vio says nonchalantly.

"Hi, Shadow, I'm Zelda," she says, smiling. Shadow smiles back before following after Vio.

One boy sits at a table with a sketchbook, drawing. He appears to be deep in thought. Vio has seen this particular boy around before, but had never shared any classes with him, let alone bother to learn his name.

On the other side of the room, a boy wearing blue is sweeping the library floor. He gives Vio and Shadow and gives them a glare before turning away.

"Who's he?" Shadow whispers, sounding quite irritated.

"That's Blue," Vio says, rolling his eyes. "The boy is prone to getting himself in trouble. I'm surprised he's not in detention right now."

The door creaks open, and two boys walk in. The first is blonde with blue eyes. He's wearing a sleeveless green jacket trimmed with fuzz over a white t-shirt, paired with a pair of plain jeans and brown boots. Vio groans as he recognizes the second one, a boy with lavender hair and brown eyes that shine red. He's wearing a dark purple hat and a long sleeved t-shirt in a lighter purple, along with jeans that reach his knees and red sneakers.

"What's wrong?" asks Shadow, looking over at the two boys.

"Do you see the one the purple?" Shadow nods. "That's Vaati. He rules this school, in a matter of speaking. You have to listen to him, and do whatever he wants you to do, or else he's make your life miserable. It's pathetic, really."

"Oh," Shadow mumbles. "Who's the other one? Is he like Vaati?"

"His name is Green." Vio pauses. He's never actually known Green to be mean, but he was always following Vaati around. "I'm not particularly sure if he acts the way Vaati does, but they_ are _best friends."

"I see..."

Vio and Shadow walk between two large sets of book cases, Vio scanning the shelves as they continue on.

And then it happens.

"_Vio!_"

There's a shriek from the other side of the bookcase, and Vio is shoved forward by a pair of tan hands.

**AN- Cliffhanger! Sorry for not updating, I'm a lazy person. Anywho, I don't write VioXShadow often, but I'm fairly satisfied with this. I hope it pleases you all.**


	5. Shadow ll Friend

**AN- Oooh, you've all been waiting for this! Why did Shadow push Vio? What's with the yelling? What was the shriek from the other side of the bookcase? Why did I put everyone in the library at the same time? Do Vio and Shadow have a thing for each other? Why am I asking so many questions? Find the answers to all these, and more, in this chapter of **_**Break My Fall!**_

Shadow isn't sure what's just happened, but he's pretty sure he's about to find out.

Right after shoving Vio, he rushes forward and grabs the stumbling blond boy's wrist, as to keep him from falling. Vio lets out a sigh of relief, but it is drowned out by a loud crash from behind them.

Shadow turns around, already knowing what he'll see. A bookcase has fallen over, books scattered everywhere. Zelda gasps, rising from her desk. What Shadow doesn't expect to see, though, is Vaati, standing right near by.

Well, not _just_ Vaati. Green is standing behind him, looking rather confused. A small boy wearing a red hoodie is on the ground, inches away from the bookcase, looking like he's about to cry. Shadow recognizes him as the boy who was staring at him in history class. Red, wasn't it?

"What do you think you're doing?" Vaati snaps at Red. "You should watch where you're going!" He points to the fallen bookcase. "Look what you've done!"

"I-I... um... I didn't..." Red mumbles. His voice is high-pitched and soft. _Now's not the time to be noticing voices,_ Shadow reminds himself.

"Don't backtalk me! If it's not your fault, then who did it?"

Shadow lets go of Vio's wrist and takes a step forward, already planning what he'll say. He takes a few more steps until he feels something on his shoulder. Vio has grabbed his shoulder, looking at him with a panicked look. Shadow's about to explain himself when another voice overpowers the room.

"You're full of crap, Vaati." All heads have turned to Blue, who is staring at Vaati accusingly, broom in hand.

"Excuse me?" Vaati replies, sounding shocked. But Shadow's always been good at acting, and he can tell it's faked.

"I saw what you did," Blue continues, dropping the broom and walking up to him.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Vaati is trying to sound confident, but Shadow hears his voice waver.

"I think you do," Blue says. "You pushed him into the bookcase!" Shadow can't be sure, but he _thinks_ he saw Vaati's eyes widen at this. Even so, Vaati lets out a small chuckle.

"Blue," he says, as if it's just a game, as if what Blue's saying is just a joke.

_But Shadow knows well enough that it isn't._

"Do you really think those petty little lies will make you look like a good person?" he asks. "Even I know you're just lying to give yourself a better reputation."

Shadow has had plenty enough. Loosening Vio's grip, he speaks up. "Hey." Vaati and Blue both turn to him.

"Shadow, no!" Vio whispers, but Shadow ignores him.

"That bookcase almost fell on us," Shadow says with as much courage as he can muster.

Vaati's eyes narrow. "And just who do you think _you_ are?"

"Shadow..." he trails off, beginning to have second thoughts. But he banishes them. "I don't think that matters though. What matters is that you almost hurt us!"

"Me?" Vaati says, eyes wide in an attempt to make himself look innocent. "I thought we cleared this up!" He motions Red. "He did it, not me!" Red whimpers, adverting his eyes from the scene.

"I don't believe you." Vaati makes a sound somewhere between a gag and a gasp, obviously from lack of confidence. Shadow continues. "I think you _did_ push him into the bookcase!"

Vaati takes a step towards Shadow, his brown eyes suppressed into little slits. Little brown slits that are shining red. "Now listen here, newbie." he says in a low growl. "But right now-" he raises his hand up level to his cheekbone. "I'm up here. And you-" he lowers his hand down to his waist. "are down here. Keep messing with me and you'll end up-" He stoops down and touches his ankle. "down here. Got it?"

Shadow sneers, not knowing _what _he's about to do, but not being scared to find out. Before he can, though, Vio steps in.

"He understands fully, Vaati, and he'll be out of your way in just a moment." He grabs Shadow by the arm and tries to drag him away, but to no avail. "Shadow, let's go."

"No, I'm staying here." Shadow insists, keeping his footing. Vaati started this mess, and he had damn right better finish it. "You can go."

"Shadow..." Vio trails off, embarrassed.

"Vio, is this your _friend?_" Vaati asks, his voice dripping with venom. Shadow glares at him. _Of course we're friends. He's been the only person nice enough to talk to me all day._

"Nope, you know me, straight-A student, I don't have time for any friends!" Vio says in one big jumble, and he might not know it, but it hits Shadow. _Hard. _He's snapped back into reality by the tugging on his arm. "Let's leave."

"I don't want to." He turns back to Vaati. "I want you to apologize to him for pushing him into the bookcase, apologize to Blue for being a jerk, apologize to Zelda for knocking over the bookcase, and apologize to me and Vio for almost hurting us!" Vaati looks as if he's about to burst. Vio gasps, loosening his grip on Shadow's arm.

"That's it," he declares. "I don't know _who_ you think you are, and _why _you think you're better than me, but this has gone far enough. I'll make your life _miserable!_" He cries out.

"Vaati, you can't just-" Blue starts, fists clenched.

"You, too, Mr. King-of-detention!" Vaati snaps. "I'll make your life a living hell!" Blue backs away, eyes wide. "And you-" he says, turning to Red. Red trembles, a tear sliding down his flushed cheeks. "you're not getting off any easier! Neither are you, Vio!" Vio stiffens.

"C'mon, Green, let's go!" Vaati says. Green stands still, staring.

"I said, c'mon, Green, we're leaving!" Green flinches.

"Oh, right!" he says, before following Vaati out.

Zelda finally snaps out of whatever trance she was in and rushes over to Red. But it seems someone has beaten her to it.

"Are you okay?" Blue asks, taking the small boy by the hand to help him up. Red's face suddenly matches his hoodie.

"U-um... I..." he stumbles, squirming away from Blue's grip and taking a step back. Blue's eyes widen, and he walks back to his fallen broom, face flushing as well.

Vio lets go of Shadow's arm. He takes a step backwards before rushing out of the library.

"Vio!" Shadow calls out after him. He briefly stops at Zelda's desk. "I am _so _sorry about this, really."

"I understand," she says, with a kind smile. "You are not to blame."

Shadow darts out after Vio. He finds him sitting at the concrete steps near the library, his downcast eyes focused on his black shoes. His head lifts a bit when Shadow appears behind him.

"I'm sorry, Vio, I really am." Vio doesn't say anything for a while, and Shadow wonders if he's ignoring him.

"I... I don't mind." Vio's words come out shaky, and Shadow knows he's holding back tears. "I never really had a social life in the first place." He stands up, brushes himself off, and makes his way down the steps. "I'll see you tomorrow," he mutters.

"Vio, wait!"

Vio turns to look at him, face flushed, eyes glimmering.

"I could be your friend."

**AN- OMG. Longest. Chapter. EVUR. And I wrote it all in one day. WTH. But anyway, I thought I might explain Shadow a bit, or at least how I see him-**

_**I always saw Shadow as being a little shy. In regular FS, I would make him the most shy, but Red's role in modern day kinda changes that. Underneath that, though, is a bit of a tougher person, kinda going along with that "I want people to see me as more than a shadow" stuff.**_ _**I know I don't really show that whole sneaky, playful side of Shadow as much, but that'll work it's way in there later.**_

**Hope that clears things up! Oh, and next chapter is another Green chapter~ With more dramas~ **


	6. Green ll Mess

**AN- Okay, so... I'm not really too excited about writing this chapter, but I hafta get it done if I wanna write more RedXBlue... and you guys all know I love them. So let's DO THIS!**

Green has seen Vaati act like this, and he feels like he should know what to expect. However, this threw him for a loop.

He had wanted to help. Not Vaati, though. He had wanted to help the small crying boy up, had wanted to tell Vaati to calm down, had wanted to stand up to Vaati, tell him what he was doing was _not _alright. But he couldn't, only because he was afraid to suffer the same fate. Only because he didn't know where he would be without Vaati. Only for his own selfish reasons.

And now, as he follows Vaati out of the library, he's not sure what to think. He knows one thing, though.

Vaati _did_ push the boy into the bookcase. Vaati must have thought Green hadn't seen. He did, though, out of the corner of his eye as he pulled a book off the shelves. It was cruel and unnecessary, and Green has no idea _what_ he's supposed to do. However, he has a feeling of how to start.

"...Vaati?" Green manages to squeak out. Vaati almost turns around.

"Yes?"

"I..." Green swallows the lump building in his throat. "I saw you push him." Vaati stops, and it's suddenly so quiet Green can hear himself breathe.

"...You _what?_"

"I saw you push that boy," Green repeats. "The one you blamed for knocking over the bookcase." Vaati turns around. He looks calm for the most part, but his face is a bit pale.

"I... I didn't..." Vaati mutters, avoiding Green's stare.

"You did," Green says softly. Vaati's gaze comes up to meet Green's, but now his eyes are narrowed, his face turning scarlet.

"So what if I did?" he snaps, and it's a tone Green finds familiar. "The kid was getting in my way!" Green suddenly doesn't feel like talking back to Vaati.

"...Okay I understand," he says in one big rush. Vaati's eyes soften.

"Good," And with that, the lavender-haired boy trots off without a good-bye.

Green sighs. He turns around to start walking home, but he bumps into something.

"Oh!" Wait... _someone._

"Sorry..." Green mumbles, and when he opens his eyes, it's Zelda. She's fine, give or take a few hairs out of place. Green instantly turns a bright red.

"It's okay, depending on what you're talking about," he says, brushing the hair out of her face.

"Huh?"

"What happened back in the library..." Zelda starts.

"I know and I'm really, truly sorry about it!" Green says in one big rush.

"It's okay, you don't have to apologize. It's not your fault." Zelda gives an exasperated sigh. "It's just... I've never really liked Vaati much, okay?"

"You didn't?" Green suddenly wonders why he had never realized it before. In fact, she always seemed to avoid talking to Vaati, looking at Vaati, or just getting _involved_ with Vaati.

Boy, does he feel stupid.

"I never have," Zelda repeats. "And to be honest, I don't understand why you're his friend. You..." she trails off for a moment, staring at her gold flats. "You're a lot nicer than Vaati, Green. And I mean that."

Green's ears are burning. "Oh, well, um..." He clears his throat. "I... I'll think about it."

Zelda nods. She smiles at Green and waves goodbye before disappearing into the hallway.

_What kind of mess have I gotten myself into?_

**AN- Okay... I'm done.**


	7. Red ll Tears

**AN- Yaaay, RedXBlue!****Now I'm gonna write. =3**

It's already break, and Red's mind is racing. _Vaati, bookcases, Blue, the new kid, Blue,_ _being defended, Blue..._ **(1)**

Okay, so it's no surprise the number one thing going through his mind is the boy who decided to defend him when he was feeling (as usual) weak. He has heard lots of rumors about Blue, all of which had made him all the more scared of the school's bad boy. Now, he's not so sure if any of those rumors could have been true.

_In fact, Blue might actually be... kind of nice._ He had not only defended Red in his time of need, but he had helped him up and asked him if he was okay. He would have never imagined a quote-unquote "bad boy" doing that. Plus, his hand was warm and he smelled like peppermint. **(2)**

Plus, Red had seen Blue dozens of times before, but when he saw him up close, he realized he was kind of handsome. Either way, Red shakes that thought off.

Currently, Red is in the nurse's office, but it's not because he's injured. He helps out in the nurse's office quite often. In fact, the nurse is one of the few people in the school who knows Red's name. _And I'm thankful for that._

The door clicks open.

Fado stands at the doorway, looking a little sickly. **(3)** Her once-fair skin is pasty and almost looks a little green. Her eyes are clouded over with a thick haze. The nurse rises from her desk at the sight.

"Oh, sweetie, are you okay?" she asks, trotting over to the girl with the pom-pom hair.

"Possibly," Fado replies, putting a hand on her stomach. "I threw up in class. I'm feeling more well now, but I believe I should go home." Red blinks. _What a strange girl._ Even stranger, he's never heard any gossip about her. Not one word.

"Oh, dear, come with me, I'll have you phone your parents immediently." As she leads her into the connecting room, Fado glances at Red and winks. Red just sits there for a few moments, feeling neither here nor there about anything.

Except for the incident. _I'm still on the same page with that. _He never liked Vaati, and now he doesn't like Vaati even more for pushing him. He was scared of Blue, but now he likes him for defending him. He likes Shadow for the same reason.

"Red?" Red jerks out of lala land.

"Yes, Miss Withers?" **(4)** he replies, turning towards her. She's younger than most of the school's staff, with strawberry blonde hair and chocolate brown eyes.

"I was told by Fado that you were involved in an accident yesterday." she says, poking her head out of the door.

"Oh," Red says, looking down. "Well, yes." _How does Fado know about what happened? Did Vaati tell everyone? How does she know it was me? Does everyone know me now? _Suddenly, Red doesn't want anyone to know him. Suddenly, he'd rather be invisible than known.

"Are you alright?" she asks.

"Yes, I'm fine."

"Well, you can always talk to me if you'd like," she says, her brow furrowing with concern.

Red nods. Miss Withers shuts the door. Red stares down at the desk he's sitting at, feeling just like how he felt in the library. Confused, scared, and vulnerable. He shivers from the air conditioning. His eyes well up, and he quickly rubs his eyes in an attempt to stop the tear flow.

The door flings open.

Red buries his head in his arms. No one should see him right now. No one should be here to see how pathetic he is. He should hide here and everyone should ignore him

_I should be invisible._

"Are you okay?" a familiar voice asks. Red stays put. _Go away._

He sniffles as more tears fall form his eyes. That's when he recognizes the faint smell of peppermint lingering in the air.

Someone nudges him. Red gets up and rubs the tears from his eyes.

**AN- Woot, woot! More RedxBlue! Anyways, you'd better be able to put up with another RedxBlue** **chapter after this before I hit you with some VioxShadow! (*cough* to be honest, I need some ideas for what to do with Vio and Shadow...) But anyway, next chapter is practically all planned out in my head, so you'd better be ready!**

**(1)- And did I mention Blue?**

**(2)- Just because.**

**(3)- I **_**told you**_** I'd find a role for her!**

**(4)- lololol That's the nurse's name in the play I'm in! (Though she acts NOTHING like the nurse in this story.)**


	8. Blue ll Alone

**AN- Hey look I'm not lazy anymore.**

Blue usually isn't a sympathetic person, but lately something's been going screwy in his wiring.

And that some_thing_ is really a some_one_ and that some_one_ is right in front of him, lifting his head up from his arms and wiping the tears from his eyes.

"I... I'm fine." the smaller boy says, his eyes a bit red around the edges. _"Are you okay?" _That's what Blue had said. Seriously, what _is_ going on with him?

"You don't _look_ okay."

"Oh... well..." his gaze drifts down to Blue's arm, and suddenly Blue remembers why he came here in the first place. The boy's eyes widen a bit in alarm. His gets up from his desk and rushes towards Blue.

"What happened?" he asks, eying the gash on Blue's right arm. (Thank the goddesses he's left handed...)

"Oh..." Blue mutters. "I kinda got in a fight." The boy's pupils shrink, leaving more room for that sky blue color Blue finds himself staring at.

"Oh gosh!" the boy says, and with that, he runs back over to and behind the desk, stoops down, and comes back up with a first aid kit. He grabs a chair from the other side of the room and brings it to one side of the desk, motioning for Blue to sit in it. Blue does so, though a bit hesitantly. People don't usually fuss over him like this.

The boy sits back down on the chair and opens the first aid kit on the table. "Miss Withers is busy right now," he explains, his face flushing. "I help out around here a lot. I've always kinda been good at treating injuries. Um, g-give me your arm..."

Blue reaches out and the boy grabs his arm with his small hands. His palms are cold and a bit sweaty, but for some reason Blue doesn't really mind. Besides, his touch is soft and gentle and he almost, momentarily, forgets about his cut.

Until, of course, he feels a wet cotton pad touch his wound. He winces, mostly from not paying attention. If he had realized that was about to happen, he wouldn't have done that. Really.

"Sorry," the boy mumbles, trying not to look at Blue.

"It's okay," Blue says. He wastes barely a moment before saying, "Um... so what's your name?"

The boy smiles, though there's a cautious element mixed in there. "Red Robison," he says. **(1)**

"Ah. I'm Blue, though you probably already know that." Red starts wrapping bandage around Blue's arm.

"I do." There's a pause, though Blue thinks Red still has more to say. "Um... th-thank you for defending me yesterday. No one's ever done that for me before..." Blue could have guessed. He had seen Red eating his lunch alone, and he had never really known anything about him... much less noticed him.

"Oh, well, yeah," is all Blue says.

"You know," Red says, slowly gaining confidence. "People are always saying bad things about you, but I think they're wrong. I think you're kind of nice."

_What was that? Did I hear him right? Did he just say what I though he said? Am I dreaming? _Blue's thoughts fly like bullets. Yet he senses Red had somehow been reading his mind, because _who would think that?_ About Blue, the bully, the bad boy, the trouble-maker? Who would believe, after all the damned rumors and lies, that underneath, he's actually a _nice person?_

Who could have known that this is exactly what he wanted to hear?

Red Robison, apparantly.

The bell rings just as Red finishes working on Blue's arm, and he stands up, grabbing his backpack from off the ground. He walks towards the door.

Lightbulb.

"Wait!" Blue cries out, surprising even himself a bit with his boldness.

Red turns around. His eyes- those eyes the color of the sky that are swallowing Blue up- are wide.

"You eat lunch alone, right?"

**AN- Woah I wrote that in no time! (Well, that is, the writing itself didn't take long...) Blue's chapters are always quickies!**

**(1)- Yes I made up last names for the Links. Here, lets me write down their full names so I won't forget-**

**Green Adams**

**Red Robison (Rob-ee-sen)**

**Blue Grim (LOL pun intended)**

**Vio(let) Evenich (Eh-vuh-nitch)**

**Shadow Walker**

**Vaati Hyde**

**Zelda Sahagun (Sah-huh-gun)**


	9. Vio ll Cute

1**AN- Sorry for not updating. I've been... rather busy lately. Last week I was performing my play, and this week was just eventful. But enough of that. Onto the story~**

Vio's reading his book. Okay, maybe "reading" is an understatement. In reality, he's sitting at a table outside of the multi-use room staring at a page in his book.

So what is he waiting for?

Well, Shadow said he was going to eat lunch with Vio, but where is he? And furthermore, why is he thinking about Shadow when he should be reading?

Never mind that, let's get back to, um... _reading._ Right.

_Blah blah blah , electrons, blah blah blah, buoyancy, blah blah blah, Shakespeare... I knew making friends would get in the way of studying..._

_ Oh, hey, there's Shadow._ He's walking towards the table, trying to stuff a notebook and some papers into his messenger bag. Right before he gets to the table, he stumbles, almost bumping into said table. Vio's eyes widen, and Shadow's hands land on the table, steadying the dark-haired boy. He breathes a sigh of relief as the table trembles from the impact.

Vio doesn't bother asking if he's okay. He's obviously fine.

"Sorry," Shadow says. Vio shrugs, as if to say, _I don't mind._ Shadow straightens himself, adjusting his bag. "We were having a test in English, and I finished a little late." He gives a little nervous smile, and Vio himself suppresses a smile at this.

Shadow's eyes flit back to Vio, and his nervous expression turns to excited. "But I have news," he says, though a tad bit smug with himself for what ever _ingenious _announcement he's about to make. "While I was taking my test, I-"

"Is this possibly why you had to stay after class to finish your test?" Vio smirks. Shadow's dark eyes widen.

"No- well, maybe- but... _anyways_... I was just thinking about what you said yesterday."

"Which was?"

"You said that anyone who messes with Vaati got their social life ruined and stuff. But I thought, 'if the person who messes with Vaati has friends who will stick with them, then...?'" He lets Vio absorb this.

Vio thinks about it. Vaati ruined many of his fellow students' social lives last year, and he assumes plenty more during middle school and possibly even elementary. However, all of his victims transferred schools or left the area entirely. No one had ever attempted something like this before. It was insane... so insane that it might just work.

"I'd like to know where you're going with this," Vio says, closing his book. Shadow slides onto the seat connected to the table, sitting next to Vio. Their hips almost touch, and this fact makes Vio's face flush a bit.

Shadow motions behind Vio towards a large tree of which is the center piece of the table. The tree itself is surrounded by a few benches, and on the bench facing them, Blue sits with... with... the boy who Vaati pushed into the bookcase yesterday. His name is escaping Vio, who mentally scolds himself for this.

"What we need is a team," Shadow says softly. "They're part of this, too. If we're together, we can take down Vaati together just by having each other."

Vio considers this. He's never been fond of Blue, but after yesterday, his opinion of him isn't quite as negative as it had been. And as for the boy he's sitting with, he seems nice, although very quiet.

_He's probably more talkative when you get to know him, _Vio thinks, having made up his mind. He turns to Shadow and smiles. "You have a point." He stands, taking his book from off of the table. "I think we should go over and introduce ourselves."

Shadow raises an eyebrow. "But they already know us. You're a star student, and They heard me say my name back in the library."

Vio rolls his eyes, but he can't help but smile. "Yes, but it's only out of courtesy. We can tell them your idea and offer to help them get through Vaati's 'punishments'."

Shadow springs up from the table, rushing to Vio's side. "Then what are we waiting for?" He grabs Vio's wrist, dragging him in the right direction. "Let's get started!"

Vio doesn't object. He honestly doesn't have the heart to do it. He just follows, his cheeks turning pink from... _something_, definitely something.

The way Shadow's acting is, in ways, cute.

**AN- Woot woot! Done~ Watermelon, as my teacher, you are to leave me an informative critique on the VioXShadow-ness of this chapter.** ***cough* Or not. :D**


	10. Shadow ll Great

**AN- I'm **_**trying**_** to get in a chapter a day, though I don't know how long that'll last.**

Shadow mouth stretches into a smile as he walks towards Red and Blue with Vio in tow. He's really excited about this "Anti-Vaati allegiance" idea. Or maybe he's just excited about making friends so easily. But either way, this is gonna be _great._

As he takes his final steps, placing him in front of them, he lets go of Vio wrist (although a bit hesitantly) and clears his throat. Loudly, to get their attention of course.

Both boys look up. Blue's gaze narrows, while Red shyly looks away and instead stares down at his knees. "Oh," Blue says bitterly. "It's you." His gaze softens a bit, and Shadow is almost sure he sees a bit of... _sympathy_ in his eyes. "Shadow, right?"

Shadow shuffles his feet, feeling a slight twist of nervousness in his stomach. "Um, yeah, that's me."

Blue turns to look at Vio. "And you brought _him._" Shadow feels a pang of anger, but from what he's heard about Blue, knows better to retort.

"Yeah, but he's part of this too," Shadow says, being careful to watch his tone.

"Part of what?" Red soft voice chimes in. He squeaks, then sinks into he seat, avoiding anyone's gaze.

"Part of the situation we've been placed in," Vio replies. Red flashes a small smile.

Blue frowns. "You mean..."

"Vaati," Vio says.

"I don't know where you're going with this."

Shadow steps forward, another grin tugging on the corners on his lips. "I started thinking- 'No one's beaten Vaati because he ruined their social lives, right?'"

Red and Blue share a puzzled look, then nod.

"And if that's true, then the easiest way to beat him-" he pauses for dramatic effect. "Would be to team up with the others on Vaati's bad side."

Red stares at him, mouth opened a little, eyes wide. Blue looks surprisingly impressed.

"Wow. I gotta admit, that's an idea I'm willing to try." Shadow smiles, having a feeling it's not easy to impress bad boys like Blue.

"Well, yeah," Shadow says, feeling a little embarrassed, but happy.

"So what you're saying is," Red says, looking up at Shadow, and he doesn't know it, but it make Shadow feel like a superior person. "We should all be friends and figure out a way to take down Vaati?"

Shadow sits down next to Red. Feeling superior is tiring. "That's the gist of it." Red smiles and nods.

"Okay, I'm in." Shadow is honestly surprised that such a quiet, good-natured boy would agree to taking down the scary, threatening king of the school that easily.

"Really?" Blue jumps in, obviously just as surprised as Shadow.

Red smirks, and it seems more than a little odd on his typically sweet face. "Just because I'm so shy doesn't mean I'm not against revenge." The smirk fades, and his gives a concerned look to his left arm. "Plus my arm still hurts from the bookcase."

_Huh,_ Shadow thinks. _So he did get pushed into the bookcase._

"Well then," Vio says, taking his seat on the other side of Shadow. "I suppose we'll just have to deal with him ourselves, won't we?"

"Absolutely," Shadow says, feeling more excited then ever. He places his hand out onto an imaginary table. "Team?"

Blue is the first to respond. "Team," he says, placing his hand on top of Shadow's.

"Team!" Red repeats, placing his hand on top of Blue's.

Vio takes a moment before doing anything, and the others stare at him.

"Team," he says at last, but instead of placing his hand on top of Red's, he places his hand under Shadow's.

Blue rolls his eyes, Red looks confused, and the imaginary table is destroyed, but Shadow doesn't care.

For some reason, this makes him all the more sure that this is gonna be _great._

**AN- Okay, guys. Get this- I am officially one-fifth of the way through this story! That's right, this is gonna be FIFTY chapters. I've already got Vio and Shadow's storyline(s) planned out, as well as Green's (which is why this story is now rated T), and I'm working on ideas for Red/Blue's. I'll see ya'll tomorrow! (Hopefully!)**


	11. Green ll Gone

1 Green spent all night trying to decide what he was going to do about Vaati, and now he's finally got it all figured out. Today, before school starts, he's going to go up to Vaati and talk to him for the last time.

That is, he _hopes_ it will be the last time, because honestly, he's realized he's tired of dealing with Vaati and his petty drama. Vaati was always cruel without good reason, and Green has decided he doesn't want to be a part of that.

But as he walks to Vaati's usual meeting spot, there's still one burning question-

_Without Vaati, who am I?_

Last night he had realized a lot about not only Vaati, but about himself as well. One of the things he had discovered is that even though Vaati treats everyone poorly, _even Green,_ Green has never done much to stop him. In fact, he's constantly relying on Vaati, and Vaati is the whole reason he's so popular. The whole irony of the situation is that Vaati is well known for ruining people's social lives, but for Green, Vaati _is_ his social life.

No more.

Finally Vaati is in sight, and Green's feet tell him, _stop, stop. you're making a mistake._

Green keeps on walking. Just a few yards away, Vaati flinches and turns toward Green. He's smiling. Then again, "smiling" is an overstatement. It's a smirk, a condescending, spiteful, I-don't-really-care-about-you-but-I-put-up-with-you-anyways smirk, and it makes Green shudder.

"Hi Vaati..." Green says shakily. Vaati doesn't seem to register Green's behavior and simply nods in response.

Green knows he has to say something, but his mouth won't form the words. He glances at the big clock residing at the front of the courtyard on the outside wall of the multi-use room. It's 8:27. He has three minutes. He had better start talking.

"Um, Vaati?" Vaati's eyes flit to Green. His gaze isn't welcoming.

"Yes?"

"I was thinking..." he considers pretending to forget what he was going to say, or just saying 'nevermind' and not going through with it-

"That's-a-first," he hears Vaati mutter under his breath at rapid speed

_-but that's the last straw._

"That maybe we shouldn't be friends anymore," Green blurts out with a flare of anger.

"Wha- huh?" Vaati's eyes grow to the size of plates. He turns to Green, slowly, and those eyes- oh goddesses, his eyes...-are shining red.

Green takes a step backwards, already regretting this decision. But he's already done it.

_It's too late._

"What?" Vaati snaps, and suddenly Green comes to the shocking realization that everyone in the courtyard is staring at them.

"Um... I said we shouldn't be friends anymore," Green says with the remaining courage he has, which is honestly isn't much.

"What are you thinking?" Vaati shouts, and Green squeezes his eyes shut, because he _wants to pretend this isn't real._ Maybe he's dreaming, and he can just wake up.

Unfortunately, he knows he can't.

Green stays silent. He doesn't respond. He doesn't know how to. He's forgotten how to talk. He _wishes _he had forgotten how to talk.

"Well?" Vaati snaps. Green opens one eye a little. Vaati's cheeks are bright red with anger, matching his eyes, which are narrowed into little slits.

"I... what you did... in the library..." Vaati's eyes shoot open for a second, but it's there, and then it's gone.

"I didn't!" he insists.

"Yes you did!" Green cries out in frustration. His vision blurs. His heartbeat is throbbing in his head. He's pretty sure he's holding back tears, but he can't tell. "You pushed him into the bookcase, and I saw it! You pushed someone for no reason except for the fact that you have no sense of right and wrong!"

Vaati is in a state of shock. The truth is out and he knows it. The courtyard is silent except for the quiet whispers of surrounding students.

Green is shocked as well. He can't believe he just said all of that. His life is over and he knows it.

The bells ring and students hesitantly clear the area. Vaati, however, stays put. So does Green, even though his feet are telling him, _run, run. before it's too late._

But it already is too late.

Green lifts his gaze up to Vaati, who's staring at him with red slits for eyes.

Green scuttles backwards, trying to escape, but Vaati's mouth opens before he can leave.

"You are _nothing_ without me."

And with that, he's gone.

**AN- Woot woot Christmas Eve chapter woot woot!**


	12. Red ll Today

**AN- Woot woot Christmas chapter woot woot!**

Life is good, and Red is happy. _Lalala, I made new friends! Lalala, I'm gonna get revenge on Vaati!_

And as he sits here in history class, he has a gut feeling that today will be better than yesterday. He smiles, bobbing his head back and forth.

At this moment Shadow enters the room. Red may not know Shadow well yet, but he knows that he's willing to take a stand. Red sorta can't help but look up to him._ I want to make a change, but I just can't find the words to do so._

In fact, he's noticed Shadow himself can be a bit shy at times. When he first approached Blue and Red yesterday, there was an ever-slight flicker of... _anxiety. _Like he had started to regret coming up to Red and Blue.

_Obviously, though, there was nothing to regret, because if Shadow hadn't_ _had his idea... well, I wouldn't be so happy._

Shadow takes his seat at the desk diagonally behind Red. Red's glad that they sit so close to each other. It's as if the universe somehow knew that these four boys were destined to become friends and-

_Brrring!_

_O-oh. The bell. Guess I drifted off into daydream-land. Hee._

The teacher begins his lesson, and red obediently listens. Obediently listens until something lands with a soft _plimp_ on his lap. He glances down.

A little folded up piece of paper. He slowly and silently unfolds it.

_Red, _it says in loopy cursive. _I forgot to ask you- when Vaati pushed you into the bookcase, did anyone notice? Besides Blue, I mean. -Shadow_

Red's lips curl into a small smile. They aren't supposed to pass notes during class, but Red temporarily ignores this bit of information. For Shadow, he'll make an exception. Under Shadow's note, he writes:

_I don't think so... actually, wait. The moment is like crystal clear to me. I remember Green's head turning __before__ Vaati pushed me. I might be wrong, though. ~Red ^-^_

He sends the note backwards with a flick of his wrist. He notices Agitha, sitting in front of him, glancing backwards at him accusingly. Red flashes a wary smile. Her eyes narrow, and she redirects her gaze to the blackboard.

In almost no time, Red has a response. The note is back, in all it's folded glory. He unfolds it, noticing the gazes of not only Agitha, but Ralph, located to his right. He tries to ignore them.

_Really? Huh. I wonder...-Shadow_

It takes Red an instant to scrawl down his response.

_What, what? What are you thinking?-Red_

And before Shadow, Agitha, or Ralph can blink the note is on Shadow's desk. Red stares at the blackboard, hearing the familiar sound of pen on paper. _Come on, Shadow, hurry up, these two are really freaking me out._

The note finally finds its way to Red, but before he can unfold it, Ralph snatches it away. Red lets out a tiny gasp, his hands rising to his mouth. He turns to Shadow. It looks as if he's looking in a mirror.

Ralph unfolds the piece of paper with gusto. It takes him a minimum of ten seconds to read the note. He snorts, then rips the note into tiny shreds. Red's eyes widen. So do Shadow's.

Once the note is in tiny pieces, he throws it at Red, like white confetti. Red's eyes well up, but he doesn't cry _because I can't do that in class. Everyone will think I'm a baby._

"Hey-" Shadow whispers, but he's cut off as Agitha grabs Red's pencil of off his desk and grips it in both hands. There is a muffled _snap_, and Red's pencil is in two pieces.

"My termites will enjoy this," she says softly, unzipping the front compartment of her backpack.

"You can't just..." Shadow whispers harshly.

"Is there a problem, Shadow?" Mr. Strudwick asks. Shadow's cheeks go from tan to pink.

"N-no sir, of course not."

Mr. Strudwick gaze shifts between the four of them.

"Red?" he says.

"U-um, n-no," Red mumbles, face flushing.

"I thought so." Mr. Strudwick turns back to the board. Red stares at the board too, an anxious lump forming in his throat.

The gut feeling is gone. _I don't think today will be much better after all._


	13. Blue ll Pain

**AN- I hate to disappoint** **you all... but these next few chapters will have few traces of pairings. I want to focus on other character relationships besides VioxShadow and RedxBlue. So... you'll have to be patient. It's just that this whole story is focused on friendship... so you know I wanna get that in there. **

If there's one class Blue can do well in, it's PE. After all, he wouldn't have been labeled a bad boy if he didn't have the strength to beat someone up. (Which he usually doesn't do, unlike what most people might think.)

Right now he's standing on the gym floor, stretching, feeling those stares on his back, resisting the urge to turn around and say, "Seriously! What _are_ you all staring at?", because honestly most of his usual anger and frustration has faded away into... maybe a more positive emotion. Maybe a more positive emotion that was maybe brought on by a boy who maybe has a strawberry blonde hair and sky blue eyes...

But enough about that.

Today, however, he's noticed something about the stares, or rather, he's not really seeing it, but he's _feeling_ the difference.

Usually those stares a nuisance, a reminder of his reputation, a reminder that he has no friends. But now that be _has_ friends, those stares shouldn't bother him... right?

_Bzzt! Wrong._

Today those stares are not just some annoyance. They're _burning._ Hateful, angry, seeking...

_Holy crap._

...Seeking revenge.

_Vaati._

Of course this is because of Vaati! Everyone in this god-damned school are like Vaati's slaves. They do whatever he wants, just because they're afraid to have the same fate as Blue. As Shadow. As Vio. As Red.

It's stupid and selfish, and it diminishes any respect Blue had for any of them. And yet he doesn't dare turn around. (But it's not because he's scared to face them or anything. How juvenile would that be?)

At this point Mrs. Blair, Blue's PE teacher announces they'll be playing "Rebound". Blue is familiar with this game. It's sort of like basketball, except you don't want to actually get the ball in the basket, or let it hit the rim. The goal is to rebound it off the backboard and to get somebody else in your team to catch it. The catch is worth different points depending on where the catcher is standing when they catch it.

They've played it before, and they already have teams. Blue wanders over to his team, puts on a blue jersey matching theirs, and stares awkwardly at the floor.

Ruto, Mido, Midna, and Groose are all staring at him. He can feel it. God, he hates his team.

The game starts, and something unthinkable happens.

_Everyone is ignoring Blue._ He's like the best athlete in the whole school, and everyone knows it! So _why on Earth_ are they ignoring him?

Oh. Vaati. Right. But they still shouldn't ignore him!

_Oh well, _he thinks._ They don't notice you, you gotta make 'em notice you._

Even after jumping, yelling, waving his arms about, and everything in between, Blue's teammates are _still_ ignoring him. And he hates it. Sometimes it had been fun being a bad boy, because even though people avoided you, you could get them to pay attention to you. When you got in a fight, _everyone_ is watching you. But now...

Blue's foot hits something, and he falls to the ground. _Hard._ Before he can even figure out what's happened, the whole gym is in hysterics.

Blue looks up to see Ruto standing next to his sprawled body, her clearly foot stuck out to trip Blue, an evil smirk painted on her face.

"Oops. My bad," she says, though its obvious she doesn't mean it. It's obvious she doesn't care that she's hurt Blue.

Except Blue has no scratches, bruises, aches, or cramps. Not on the outside.

As much as he hates to admit it, he's only hurting on the inside right now. But he stands up, brushes himself off, glares at Ruto (who sticks her tongue out at him- rude much?), and pretends it isn't bugging him.

_Even though it is._

A few minutes later, class is out and the students are free to go to the locker rooms to change. The bell rings, and Blue, dressed in his navy t-shirt and jeans, walks over to the giant oak tree holding back tears.

When he's just a few paces away, Red turns around, and Blue sees his own pain reflected in those sky-blue eyes.

**AN- God, that was rushed. And a lot shorter than I had expected.**


	14. Vio ll Together

After break, (in which Blue was suspiciously quiet) Vio walks to his next class, home economics. Before he can get even fairly close to his destination, a familiar voice rings out behind him.

"Vio!" Vio turns his head to see Blue heading towards him, and while his tone is chipper, his eyes say otherwise.

"Hello Blue," Vio says as the dirty-blonde boy reaches his side.

"What class do you have next?" Blue asks.

Vio rolls his eyes in amusement. "Home economics, just like you."

"Oh. Right." There is a pause. "We have that class together?"

Vio nods. "Yes. Yes, we do."

Again, "Oh." Silence.

Vio knows something's going on with Blue, but he has no idea what.

"Blue, are you alright?"

Blue eyes widen.

"Yes."

"You don't _seem_ alright. Did something happen?"

Blue turns to him. "You mean nothing happened to you?"

Vio is genuinely confused. What does Blue mean by asking such a question? "No, nothing in particular." he responds at last.

Blue growls.

"I ask again, did something happen to you?"

Blue avoids Vio's gaze. "It's nothing."

"Blue, I'm sure it's not-"

"Nothing. Really."

Vio sighs. He's thinking, not for the first time, that Blue isn't very open with his feelings. Something _is_ wrong, and he's concerned. He needs to find out. When he's curious, nothing will stop him in finding the answers.

As the two of the enter home economics, Vio gets a familiar feeling. The feeling that someone is staring at him.

He looks up.

The whole room is staring at him. Narrowed glares and angry sneers tell Vio that these stares are not friendly.

This is a truly frightening reality, and Vio has a feeling it's about to get worse.

As he takes his seat next to Groose (who, like everyone else, is giving him the evil eye) he begins to wish something he never would have expected.

_I wish I sat next to Blue._

The stares surround Vio, and he can't break free from the feeling that _Vaati did this. He warped their seemingly-innocent minds and MADE them do this._

Vio shudders. The room feels as if it is made of ice. He feels awful, even though he knows it's not his fault.

Class begins. It's the beginning of the year, and the class is starting their sewing unit. They're sewing tiny little pillows as practice. (What Vio will do with his miniature pillow, he has no idea. It's certainly not big enough for him or either of his younger siblings.) Just as Vio begins-

-_Splat!_

"Oh! I am _so _sorry!"

Vio turns his head towards the commotion. Mrs. Tiff's coffee cup has fallen onto the ground, its top popped off, its contents spewed everywhere. A good amount of it has clung onto Mrs. Tiff's silk blouse, and she stares down at it, shocked. Cawlin, the teacher's assistant, stands next to the mess, looking guilty.

"It's quite alright, Cawlin," says Mrs. Tiff, sounding dazed. "I just think I should... go to the teacher's lounge and change into the something... something that doesn't have a coffee stain on it." She briskly walks out of the room, muttering, "I need to get a new job."

When she leaves the room, Cawlin glances at Groose and winks. _It's a signal, _Vio thinks. But before he can think anymore, Strich slides a pair of fabric scissors across the table to Groose.

Vio has no idea what's going on. Everyone is still staring at him, but with anticipation rather than anger.

Vio is so confused that he doesn't notice Groose reaching for his miniature pillow. Vio _does_ notice, however, when he snatches it from Vio's grasp. Before he can object, Groose has snipped the pillow into bits and pieces of purple fabric and fluffy cotton. Vio stares at it, unable to speak.

Cawlin rushes over and tosses the mess into the trash before high-fiving Groose. Delighted whispers surround them.

Vio turns to Blue, shaking. Blue catches his eye, and while he doesn't say anything, Vio can tell what he's thinking. It's a feeling between them both, a feeling that somehow manages to bring Vio back to reality again.

_I know it's tough, the way things are now, but we're gonna get through this, _Blue seems to say. _Just... stay strong or whatever. We've got Red and Shadow on our sides, too. We can get through this. Together._


	15. Shadow ll Echoing

Shadow warily walks into the lunchroom eyeing the students as he walks to the cafeteria line. **(1)** He would be with his friends right now, but he left his lunch at home. Lucky for him, Blue has some spare money and was surprisingly generous with it. **(2)**

The only flaw with this plan: it's the perfect time for the bullies to strike. So Shadow's best bet is to act natural.

Unfortunately that's not easy to do with two hundred teenagers staring at you. Shadow takes a deep breath and keeps on walking.

Everyone is staring.

_Just keep walking, just keep walking._

Everyone hates him.

_Just keep walking, just keep walking._

He's doomed.

_Just keep walking, JUST KEEP WALKING._

Finally he's made it to the lunch line and everyone is _still_ staring. God, he hates Vaati so much. He feels lucky that he has people to help him out or else he wouldn't know _what_ to do.

Okay, to be honest, if he hadn't met Vio this whole mess wouldn't have happened. It went something like this- he met Vio, he followed him to the library, Vaati pushed Red, the bookcase fell over, Vio and Shadow were almost killed, Blue and Shadow got pissed, Vaati got even more pissed and swore revenge, the four of them teamed up, and now they're getting bullied.

And now it finally hits Shadow that _he_ brought this on. The others are getting bullied because he opened his big mouth. Blue and Red and... Vio...

Suddenly he feels awful. Suddenly he hates himself. Suddenly those feelings... those feelings that he thought he had banished long ago... are coming back.

Shadow feels like crying, but for some reason the tears aren't coming to his eyes.

The bullies must have sensed this, because it seems they have decide that if Shadow won't cry, they'll _make_ him cry.

One sharp shove from Mido sends him hurdling backwards, waving his arms about as if he can balance himself and get right back up.

_As if._

Shadow managed to stop himself from falling, but he's still stumbling backwards... stumbling... stumbling... stumbling backwards into the salad bar.

_Bam._

Now Shadow is sprawled on the ground covered in iceberg lettuce, cherry tomatoes, onions slices, and chopped up carrots. His hair- thick with ranch dressing. His shirt- decorated with slimy tomato seeds. His favorite hat; the black one that flows down his back- ruined.

Shadow holds back tears because he can't bear to have anyone see him cry. He can't let them know he's weak, can't show them all the pain he's holding inside of himself right now... can't let them see who he really is.

And now, like the sight of Shadow-salad is the best thing since sliced bread, the whole cafeteria erupts in laughter. Shadow, even with his eyes squeezed shut, sees bright white camera flashes.

His life is over. He is officially doomed with a capital D-O-O-M-E-D.

The lunch doors open.

Shadow hunches up, pulling his knees up to his chest, trying to hide the hot tears streaming down his cheeks.

And then-

"Shadow!"

Is that...?

Quick, frantic footsteps approach him. Someone grabs his hand.

Shadow looks up.

It is.

Vio stares at him, eyes filled with concern, fear, confusion, anger, and... something else.

"V-vio..."

"Shadow, are you alright? I heard the commotion from outside and came in to check on you. What happened?"

More tears rise to Shadow eyes and he doesn't bother holding them back, letting them fall down his face like a river. Vio squeezes his hand. Shadow squeezes back. Vio's hands are soft and warm, and it manages to calm Shadow, yet not enough to stop his tears.

"I... th-this is my fault..."

Vio stares at him, dumbstruck. "What are you talking about?"

"We-we're all getting bullied be-because of me... If I-I hadn't opened my big, dumb mouth-"

"Shadow." Vio cuts him off, staring at him sternly. "What you did is the bravest thing I've ever seen, and I don't want you to forget it. Ever. You, Blue, Red, and I would have never become friends if you hadn't done that. We're proud of you. Really."

Shadow stares back into Vio's grey-blue eyes, shocked, yet wonderstruck all at once. His tears have subsided. He doesn't smile, but he doesn't frown, either. Vio takes his other hand and helps him up, smiling all the while.

Shadow stands shakily, clutching Vio's hands. He takes a step and manages to slip on more ranch dressing. Vio laughs, and while it's forced, it manages to get Shadow to smile as well.

Shadow doesn't think. He just moves on an impulse. He just _does._

One second they were standing there hand-in-hand, surrounded by laughing kids, some _still_ taking picture of the _hilarious _scene unfolded before them.

The next second Shadow's lips are on Vio's, moving slowly while he squeezes Vio's hand even tighter. His face, already bright pink from embarrassment, flushes a fiery, burning red. The cafeteria, one bursting with laughter and shouting, is now silent except for the sound of Shadow beating heart.

Shadow's eyes shoot open, and he back away quickly, his hands flying to his mouth. Instead of staring at Vio, he stares at his shoes, soaked with even _more _ranch dressing.

_Oh no what have I done now Vio hates me too why can't you think for once you stupid idiot!_

"Sh-shadow..." Vio murmurs softly.

_Don't look up, don'tlookup, DON'TLOOKUP-_

Shadow looks up. Vio's eyes are widened in shock, his face just as red as Shadow's.

Shadow doesn't think. He just moves on an impulse. He just _does._

As he bolts out of the cafeteria, the last thing he hears is the quiet, gossiping whispers of fellow students, and Vio's voice echoing in his head.

**AN- WOAH what did I** **just write.** **Kinda early for this, you might think, but don't worry, I have a plan! Oh, and I want to thank my friend Lea for the lunch room idea. *huggles***

**(1)- I've heard some high schools don't serve lunch but their's does SO HA.**

**(2)- Why is Blue generous, you ask? Because in my circle of friends, we have decided that in FiM I am Rarity, and in FS I am Blue. Rarity= Element of Generosity= Blue. YOU CAN'T FIGHT THAT LOGIC.**


	16. Green ll Sorry

As Green opens his eyes in the morning, he knows he's in for a rough day. He barely got any sleep last night, and when he did fall asleep, he dreamt of dark rain clouds and giant spiders and falling... falling...

He turns his alarm clock off.

After getting dressed in a green t-shirt and plain jeans (because no that he's no longer popular, does he really have to care about how he looks?) he tromps downstairs to eat his breakfast. Instead of cereal, what catches his eye is his sister, eyes downcast, staring at the remains of her rice-crispies.

"Aryll, is there something wrong?" he asks, sitting down next to her. Aryll sniffles.

"The kids at school are being mean to me, Green."

Green's eyes grow wide.

"Yesterday two boys chased me around and called me names." She begins to cry. "And all the girls say my clothes are weird and my hair isn't naturally blonde. They... they said I dyed it to try to be cool... but... I..." She collapses into Green's shoulder, sobbing.

Green is practically paralyzed. Memories buzz around in his head.

_Aryll sits on the swings, but she is not having a good time. Two boys stand on either side of her, violently jerking the swing back and forth. Aryll cries out for help._

"_Stooooop it!"_

"_Oh, are ya gonna cry?"_

"_Yeah, are ya gonna cry for yer mommy?"_

"_Stooooop!"_

"_Leave her alone, you big meanies_!"

_The bullies turn to see that Aryll's older brother has arrived, rushing towards them as he reaches out for his sister._

"_Oh no, it's Green!"_

"_Run, or he'll beat us up!"_

_The bullies scramble away, unaware that Green would never actually beat them up, but they're honestly better off if they keep on thinking that._

"_You okay Aryll?" Green asks, stooping down to her level._

"_Yeah-huh," Aryll mumbles, smiling._

On another occasion...

"_Isn't that Green?"_

"_Yeah, he's weird!"_

"_I heard he beats up little kids!"_

"_Freak!"_

"_His hair is so messy! Does he __**ever**__ brush it?"_

_Green stares at his feet, ignoring the gossip. He looks up when someone grabs his hand._

"_You aren't gonna let them bother you, right?" Zelda says, squeezing Green's hand._

_Green nods._

_Zelda smiles. "C'mon, they cut the grass yesterday! Maybe we can make all the dried grass into a huge pile!" she says, spreading her arms out for effect._

_Green smiles back._

And then, one day...

"_Hey, that's Green. He's really weird."_

"_Really? Does he have any friends?"_

"_Only Zelda, and she's absent today."_

_It only takes a few moments for them to decide to pick on Green, trailing behind him and calling him names, occasionally even throwing crumpled paper at the back of his head. Green holds back tears._

"_Leave him alone!"_

_The bullies turn. So does Green._

_Before them stands a boy with long lavender hair and brown eyes that shine red._

_He grabs Green by the wrist and drags him away. "C'mon, let's go."_

_One they're a decent distance away, he whispers to Green, "Hey, I'm Vaati."_

"_I'm Green... Thanks."_

Vaati seemed so kind when they first met... what happened?

_People change, that's what happened. _Green's mean voice says.

Green doesn't want to believe it, and yet he knows that it's true.

Hours later, it's break and Green sits alone, staring at the scenery. And by scenery, I mean other students. Other students that are gossiping. About _him._

"That's Green over there, huh?"

"I heard he ditched Vaati."

"Hmph. Loser."

"Look at what he's wearing..."

"Omigosh, he's looking this way! Quick, ignore him!"

Green stares at his shoes and sighs. Being alone is painful. He takes a last bite of the apple he holds and stands up to throw is away.

Just as he does...

Someone shoves him, and he stumbles forward, knocking over the garbage can and roughly landing on it. He's not covered in garbage or anything of the sort, but his wrist hurts like _hell._

He turns around.

"What was that... for..."

Standing before him is a boy with long lavender hair and brown eyes that shine red.

"Whaddya think it was for?" Vaati snaps with a smirk.

A group has formed around him and is laughing and laughing. Green brings his hands up to his eyes to cry, and that's when realizes that _he can't move his hand._

That hand, the one that hurts after he was pushed... he can't move it.

Did Vaati break his wrist?

"What's wrong?" Vaati asks, as if he's perfectly innocent. His eyes shine red.

Green's looks up at Vaati, but he doesn't really see him. "I can't move my hand."

Vaati and his pack just keep laughing.

"Vaati, I think you broke my wrist."

They just keep laughing. Green's in pain, and they're laughing... laughing...

Green stands up shakily and carefully grabs his wrist. It doesn't feel broken... but he still can't move his hand.

Using his remaining strength, he walks to the nurse's office.

When he walks in, a boy sitting at the counter looks up and his eyes grow to the size of plates.

Green immediately recognizes him as the boy Vaati pushed into the bookcase.

The boy rushes out of his desk and over to Green. Green squeezes his eyes shut, prepared for the worst.

"Are you okay? What happened to your wrist?"

Green slowly opens his eyes and looks at the smaller teen.

"I'm so sorry."


	17. Red ll Crush

Green's wrist wasn't broken. His hand was just a bit paralyzed from shock. But when Red had asked what shocked Green so much, he didn't answer...

_Green was hiding something, but what?_ For once he _doesn't_ know the school gossip- he's had other things on his mind- and he wants to.

Red is so wrapped up in his thoughts and emotions at the end of fourth period that he hardly notices the bell ring. In fact, he _doesn't _notice the bell ring. He just sits there, staring off into space until a familiar voice and a sharp smack on his head snaps him back into reality.

"Red. Dude,"

"Huh- wha?"

It's Blue, who has fourth period in English next to Red's math class. Red takes a moment to soak in the sight of him. He's dressed in a dark, yet bright blue t-shirt and ripped, faded jeans. He stares Red down with those bright blue eyes, and Red would stare back if his eyes hadn't flitted to Blue's dirty blonde hair. His arms are crossed, his eyes were narrowed, but now they're not, because now they're wide and his face is flushing... _but wait, why?_

"What's wrong, Blue?" Red asks.

Blue quick-looks away. "N-nothing," he forces his gaze back to Red. "Now c'mon, we gotta go meet with Vio and Shadow." Red decides to disregard Blue's strange behavior for now. _I gues it doesn't really matter._

Red nods and grabs his backpack. He jumps up and follows Blue out of the classroom. But the burning question is still there- _what was Green hiding from me?_

Someone grabs his wrist. Red shrieks out in surprise. Ghirahim has a tight grip on Red's wrist, and Red can't squirm away. **(1)**

"You're Red, aren't you?" he says, tilting his head. All of Red's breath is suddenly drawn out of him. Ghirahim, who honestly scares him half to death, knows his name, and is scaring him right this second. _Why oh why oh why can't I go back to being invisible?_

"Y-yeah..." he mumbles.

Ghirahim digs his nails into Red's wrist. Red whimpers and tries to get away, but that just results in scratches on his wrist. **(2)**

But then, it stops. His wrist is free, and he's okay, give or take some thin scratches on his wrist.

_But... how?_

"Leave him alone."

Red looks up.

Blue is staring daggers at Ghirahim, clutching Ghirahim's hand as if he can squeeze the life out of it.

_He... saved me. Blue saved me._

Ghirahim manages to break free from Blue's death grip, and with an angry, "hmph!" he flounces down the hall.

"Are you okay, Red?"

Red doesn't respond. Not with words. Instead, he steps forward and flings his arms around Blue's neck, grinning widely.

Blue sputters and stutters and mumbles and grumbles before pushing Red away. "G-get off me!" he cries out, his face flushing a bright pink.

"O-oh!" Red says, looking down at his feet. He feels his face flushing as well. "I'm sorry, Blue, I just..."

"Yeah, whatever," Blue says. "Just feel lucky I got that creep away form you." He takes Red's hand in his. "C'mon, we still gotta meet with Vio and Shadow!"

Red's face matches his name. He smiles shyly and manages an, "Um... okay."

Red's beginning to notice things about himself he never would have guessed.

For starters, who would've imagined his first crush would be on another guy?

**AN- Wow! 2 chapters in one day! And dawww, wasn't that sweet? Also, I wanna thank my brother Jaden for telling me to use Ghira! (Even though he'll never read this. Ever.)**

**(1)- Why doesn't Ghirahim rule the school?** **Because he's busy ruling the goths, silly duckling.**

**(2)- Ghirahim has long nails. 'Nuff said.**


	18. Blue ll Promise

Blue's pulse races as he drags Red down the steps leading to the courtyard. Well, on the way to the courtyard. Their fifth period classes are both on the opposite end of the school, so it might take a while to actually _get _there.

The funny thing, there's something Blue can't get his mind off of. Something that might seem kind of... unimportant. But dammit, he can't stop thinking about it!

After he smacked Red back in to reality in his classroom, Red was staring at him. Looking at him, up and down. And that's when Blue thought (and maybe he shouldn't have, maybe it seemed a _bit_ perverted, but can he really help the things that come to his mind?)-

_Is Red checking me out?_

And that's the thought that he still can't fight, even a full six or seven minutes later.

_Was he checking me out? Does he like me... like that? And do I even like him?_

Blue tries to shake the thoughts out, but dammit, he still can't.

_No way. There's just no way. I do not. It's not even possible. Not at all._

Then wait- why is he holding Red's hand?

He lets go of Red's hand and brings his own hand up to his heart so fats that it makes a forceful _"swish"_ sound. When he places his hand on his chest, he feels his heart beating a god-damned drum.

"Blue?"

Blue doesn't turn around. He can't. Because, oh goddesses, if he _does-_

"Is something wrong?"

Blue can't stand it. He turns around.

Red is standing there, cheeks pink, strawberry blonde hair shining in the sun. And he's staring with Blue with those sky eyes that Blue loves so much.

The whole thought is enough to make Blue sick.

"Yeah, I'm okay," he grumbles, his face heating up again. "Now just hurry it up!"

Red giggles. "Yes, sir!" And with that, he bounds in front of Blue, smiling wildly. "You just gotta catch me first!"

"H-hey, Red!" Blue shouts out, trying all too hard to suppress his smile. "You get back here, right now, or I'll-"

"Or you'll what?" Red giggles.

Blue leaps forward and grabs Red's shoulder. Red cries out and stumbles backwards. And what does he have to stumble into?

That's right, I remember now...

Blue, who instantly turns scarlet.

"O-oh, Blue..." Red looks away, but he doesn't make much of an attempt to move away. "I didn't mean to, really..."

Blue is quick to push the smaller boy away. "Yeah, whatever, it's fine," he says, and Red has no idea, but he's trying insanely hard to keep his cool. Not because he's nervous or freaked out, but maybe because he's kinda happy?

Blue brushes that thought aside as well.

But as the two of them reach the edge of the courtyard, Blue is sure of one thing, and it's one thing he promised himself would never happen-

He's in love.

Well, there goes another broken promise.


	19. Vio ll Kissed

**AN- I deeply apologize for the wait! Anywho, without further ado...**

Vio can still feel Shadow's lips pressed against his.

It was a kiss. From _Shadow. _Shadow, after only knowing him for three days, kissed him. Vio still isn't sure what to think.

"Where's Shadow?" Blue asks as he approaches with Red trailing behind.

"He'll be back. He said he needed to get 'supplies'."

It technically isn't a lie. Shadow _did_ say he needed supplies, presumably for another one of his Anti-Vaati ideas. Whether Shadow himself was lying, Vio can't say for sure.

"Supplies?" Blue echoes, raising an eyebrow. He looks a bit... _alarmed._ "...For what?"

Vio shrugs. "He neglected to tell me."

It's very likely that Shadow _was_ lying. "Getting supplies" seemed like a legitimate excuse to avoid Vio, which was exactly what the purple-haired teen had been doing since the incident in the cafeteria. Though, honestly, "incident" wasn't exactly the right word. Shadow hadn't _accidentally_ kissed Vio.

Although that brings up the burning question once more: Why _did_ Shadow kiss Vio?

"Her sure has been acting strange lately..." Red says as he sits down next to Vio.

Blue quickly claims him spot on the other side of Red. "Yeah," he comments, digging through his backpack. "First he runs off, then he was all quiet during break..." He takes out a brown paper lunch bag. "...And now he needs... '_supplies'_ for something he won't tell us about."

Vio and Red's faces both flush as his meaning sinks in. **(1)**

"B-blue!" Red squeaks.

"What? I'm just saying."

Vio shakes his head, trying to rid his mind of unwanted thoughts. Shadow _did_ kiss him... what if- _NO. Don't even think about it. Don't think about ANYTHING._ "He's just shaken up from the incident in the cafeteria, I'm sure," he says without thinking.

Red and Blue both look at him oddly.

Vio should have thought first.

"What _did_ happen?" Red asks. "You never told us."

"Yeah," Blue chimes in. "When we asked, you just didn't say anything."

"And you looked really upset. Was something bothering you?"

The two of them wait, expecting an answer. Vio feels his cheeks grow warm. He must answer. _If I don't, _he calculates. _Red will be sad and Blue will be angry..._

In short, if he doesn't answer, it won't end well. But he can't tell them the truth.

Vio quickly realizes he only has one option.

"Well, Shadow was pushed into the salad bar," he begins, managing to stay calm. "It made quite a mess. He also seemed to think it was his fault that we're in so much trouble."

Blue snorts, and for a split second Vio fears Blue can tell he's hiding something. "He seriously thought it was _his_ fault?"

Vio feels as if a weight has been lifted off of his shoulders. He nods.

While Blue seems pleased with the explanation...

"And?"

Red stares Vio down, his eyes sparkling with anticipation, an unusual smirk planted on his face.

"...And?" Vio echoes, feeling his throat go dry.

Red nods, his expression becoming ever-more mischievous.

Vio places a hand up to his cheek, realizing it's burning red.

Blue looks between the two, obviously clueless. "Would one of you puh_-lease _tell me what's going on?"

"Well?" Red says. "I'm waiting."

"I- um..." Vio feels the words inside of his throat, locked up, wanting to break free. But Vio's got the key and he is _not_ letting them out.

The words repeat over and over again in his head, _Shadow kissed me. Shadow kissed me. Shadow kissed me. Shadow kissed me? Shadow kissed me! Shadow. Kissed. Me._

But Vio still couldn't wrap his head around "_why?_".

Red stares. Smirks. Waits.

Vio chokes. Stutters. Blushes.

Blue sits. Blinks. Probably wonders _what the hell is going on?_

And then.

_Step. Step. Step._

Coming this way.

Vio turns.

His eyes meet with Shadow's for a split second, and in that second Vio can tell exactly what he's thinking.

_I kissed him._


	20. Shadow ll Can't

_I kissed him._

Shadow has no idea what went through him in that moment, but all that mattered was that _he kissed Vio._ He still doesn't even know why, but yet... he did. He kissed Vio. His head hurts from the thoughts invading his weak, feeble mind.

He decides to focus on something else, mainly his friends. But not Vio. This is when he realizes that something strange is going on. Vio looks nervous, almost as if he's about to burst. Red is staring at Shadow ever-so-mischievously, occasionally switching his glance to Vio. Blue's expression makes it clear that he has no idea what's going on. Of course, Shadow doesn't know either, so he asks.

"Um... so... what's going on, guys?"

"I have no idea," says Blue.

Red's smirk grows wider. "Vio was just about to tell us what went on in the cafeteria yesterday. Maybe you could help him?" Shadow shudders. This is _not_ the Red he knows.

"Nothing happened Red, really," Vio insists, and while he isn't giving anything away, it's not at all convincing. That, and Shadow can't help but feel pained at the statement. Does Vio want to forget that it ever happened?

Either way, Shadow's not going to be telling the truth, either.

"Well, Shadow?" Red says expectantly. "Anything you wanna tell us?" Blue looks at Red strangely, as if to say, _"Am I a part of this?"_

"Nope," Shadow replies flatly. "Nothing."

Red's eyes widen a tad bit at Shadow's nonchalant response. "Wh-what?"

"I told you, nothing happened," Shadow repeats, keeping a good poker face. He sits down next to Blue, wanting to keep his distance from Vio.

"Anyways," he says. "We shouldn't focus on that. I have an idea I want to share with you all."

"Hit us with it," Blue says.

Shadow pulls out of his messenger bag a clipboard with a piece of paper attached. The title line of the paper says, in large, flowing cursive- _Taking Down Vaati- Game Plan!_

"So we're coming up with a plan?" Red says at last.

"Yep!" Shadow says proudly.

"Okay then!" Blue says. "What if we just go up to him and pound his face in?"

"Blue!" Red shrieks.

"I don't think that's such a good idea," Vio comments. "Vaati will just believe that _more_ revenge is necessary."

Blue crosses his arms, slumping against the bench the four boys were sitting on. "Fine."

Red speaks up, his timid voice sounding all too different from the voice shadow had been hearing just a minute prior. "Um... I think I might have an idea... if that's okay."

Shadow nods. "Tell us."

Red smiles. "Well, I was just thinking that we have to do something that won't get us even more bullied."

"Obviously," Blue snorts.

"...But everyone does this for Vaati because they're afraid to end up like us, right?"

Blue grows still. "R-right! Exactly!" he shouts out, his voice tinged with rage.

"So if no one was so scared of Vaati, there would be no problem in the first place," Vio adds.

Red nods, his face lighting up. "Yes, yes! So to defeat Vaati, we have to do something to make everyone realize he's not that scary! Then everyone will stop worshiping him, and stop bullying us!"

"Good thinking, Red!" Blue says, giving the smaller boy a playful punch in the shoulder.

Red's cheeks turn pink. "Well, you know..."

"That'll work perfectly!" Shadow cries, scrawling down the words before they get lost in the thought-crowd of his ever-busy mind.

"Hey, look, it's Shadow!"

Shadow freezes. No. No. _No!_

"And whaddya know, it's Vio, too!"

Shadow grips the clipboard tighter, his body growing tense as he turns around.

Two of the Know-it-all Brothers stand before him- which ones, Shadow's not sure.

"So, how 'ya doing?" one of them asks.

"Um... fine..." Shadow mumbles, with no attempt in hiding his discomfort.

"Oh, really?" the other says slyly. "I wouldn't think so after yesterday's mishap. The _whole_ school is talking about it, 'ya know."

Shadow holds his breath. "They... are?"

"Yep. Y'know, how you're a fag and all." He says it as if it's nothing, as if it's unimportant, but it hits Red and Blue with flying colors.

"Y-you... you're..." Blue murmurs, turning to look at Shadow. He sounds as if he's just had an epiphany. Which, well, he kinda has.

"Yep," one of the brothers answers. "He kissed Vio yesterday in the cafeteria."

Blue looks frantically between Vio and Shadow, awestruck. "B-but– what?"

Red stands up, looked almost..._offended_by what he's just heard. "Why didn't you tell us?" he exclaims, turning pink.

Shadow falters under the pressure. "I just..."

"You just what?" Red snaps, his eyes welling up with tears. "You think you can't _trust_us? Is that it? Huh?"

"Red, calm down!" Blue says sternly. "I'm sure that's not what he meant. Some people are really sensitive about this stuff..."

"Obviously," one of the brothers adds with a wicked smirk.

"Now, you–!" Blue bursts out of his seat, suddenly furious. "Just, just _listen_, got it? Just because somebody's _different_, doesn't mean you hafta go make fun of them about it! We're all different, aren't we? So why don't you go and-"

"I-it's o-o-okay, Blue. I'm just gonna... g-go." Shadow feels his self-esteem slipping as he rises from his seat.

"But- Shadow..." Blue begs.

"It's okay, really," Shadow says, unable to hide his emotions. It seems as if every emotion has been set loose at once- happy that Blue stood up for him, sad that the others know the truth, angry that the Know-it-all Brothers told them, scared of Red's angry outburst, and embarrassed, just embarrassed, that Vio saw it all go down.

Speaking of Vio... Shadow glances at him.

His clipboard falls to the ground with a _clack._

Vio's eyes are wide, pupils small. His face is pale and his breathing is rigid. He's staring directly at Shadow.

"V-Vio...?"

"I-I can't..." Vio mumbles. "I can't... or-or I'll end up like him..."

AN- Omigod yet another drama bomb I have dropped! This is probably one of, if not the longest chapter in the series, and it was really fun to write!

Oh, and people- we're two-fifths through! There's still lots more to read! And for me to write!


	21. Green ll Same

Green wakes up with the painful sound of his alarm clock blistering his ears. He rises and slams his hand down on the button that turns it off.

After getting dressed with little-to-no effort style-wise, he slugs downstairs. Aryll is sitting at the table, sniffling. His parents aren't around. Triforce Crunchies for breakfast.

Same old, same old.

PE is first period for Green. The only period he shares with Vaati. Lovely. He runs around the track once more, sweat beading on his forehead. His breathing is labored, and each step he takes sends a rush of pain dashing through his lower leg. His throat aches, but he has to keep going, because... because...

...because _why?_ He doesn't care about his grade _this_ much. Going through all this pain... is it really worth it for an A? He definitely doesn't _like_ the pain.

But still, he keeps running.

Same old, same old.

It's break. For once, Green has something to do. He's helping Zelda hang up her student-council posters around the school. It's nice to be around someone who cares.

But, of course, nothing good lasts forever.

"Hey Zelda!~" a familiar voice calls out. Green's face falls.

Zelda turns and sighs. "What do you want, Groose?"

Same old, same old.

"Just thought you should get some help putting up those signs," he says, shuffling his feet shyly. Green glares. Isn't _he_ supposed to be helping Zelda?

"I already have help," Zelda replies, motioning towards Green. Despite his life being a living trainwreck, Green feels a slight swelling of happiness as his heart picks up pace.

Groose scoffs. "This loser?" He shoves Green, who struggles to keep his balance before hitting the ground. _Hard._ His back aches as he looks up.

"He couldn't be of help to anybody, especially a pretty little thing like you." Green's stomach churns as Groose slings an arm around Zelda. Zelda, however, shrugs him off.

"You shouldn't be so rude to him," Zelda says, bending over to help Green up. Green's skin tingles as she takes his hand in hers. "Just because he's realized who his friends _really_ are doesn't mean-"

"A_hem._"

Zelda's head darts up, while Green turns his slowly. He already knows who it is.

Today his lavender hair was gathered up in a ponytail. His eyes were shining red and he was wearing- _huh._ He was wearing eyeliner.

"I don't think what you're doing is a very good idea, Zelda." he says, looking at the blonde with some sort of wicked determination.

"What do you mean...?" Zelda says slowly, blue eyes narrowing.

Vaati walks to Green, who just found his footing, and yanks one of the papers out of his hand. He smacks Green with it. Green winces, though deep down he knows he should have seen this coming.

Vaati shoves the paper inches away from Zelda's face. Zelda stands her ground.

"You wanna be in student council, right?" he chuckles. "How cute."

"Get on with the point," Zelda commands.

Vaati snatches the paper away, scowling. "The point is if you keep on defending _traitor_ boy here, I'll gladly take you down the way I did him."

Zelda's eyes grow wide. "But that means..."

Vaati grins. "You won't be elected."

The bell rings.

Vaati throws the paper at Green. It hits his face with a harsh _whap._ It stings.

"Keep that in mind," he hisses. "Before you try anything _clever_, you stupid piece of sh*t."

Green's heart pounds so hard he can feel it in his head. He can't bear to look at Zelda. Right as he works up the courage to say something, she runs off.

Green stares after her, the unspoken words filling his throat.

_Ew. _Wait. Those aren't words...

Before Green can struggle, he's thrown up all over the ground, coughing and sputtering. The sour taste is stuck in his mouth, and his throat hurts like hell.

The vomit that's escaped him is purple. Just like his fate.

_That was the last I saw of Zelda today,_ Green thinks as he walks home. (Aryll was getting out of school late.) Well, that wasn't entirely true. He saw her in class, but she wouldn't look at him. She looked really stressed. Green can see why. He himself feels stressed to the bone.

When he gets home, his parents are fighting. Something about money to support our family, proper education, and...

_Filing a divorce._

Green, unable to contain the trainwreck, dashes up the stairs and slams the door to his room.

The yelling grows louder.

Green tosses his backpack aside and collapses onto his bed, sobbing.

_Same old, same old._

**AN- Sorry about the hiatus, everyone! I've been working on another project, which I will tell you about when you guys want, because it does contain Four Swords. It won't be here on FanFiction, though, because it's not a story. Hope you enjoyed this chapter!**


	22. Red ll Better

1 _Wow. What a week._

Red sets his backpack down and hops up onto his bed. In only five days, he's gained three friends and a mortal enemy. Things are terrible and wonderful all at the same time. He's so excited his head is spinning. But one thing is still bugging him.

_Vio and Shadow kissed and didn't tell us! _It's still bugging Red to no end. How could two friends kiss and then _not_ tell their other friends? It's baffling to him!

It's _obvious_ they like each other! Red sighs and flops down onto his pillow, recalling how exactly he came to this conclusion.

_"Well then," Vio said, sitting on the bench next to Shadow, "we'll just have to take care of him ourselves, won't we?"_

_ Shadow beamed. "Absolutely." He placed his hand out. "Team?"_

_ Blue and Red responded quickly, placing their hands on top. Vio, however, slipped his hand under to it touches Shadow's._ _Shadow's_ _smile grew wider._

_ Red raised an eyebrow, and in an instant, he understood._

_ 'Ohhhhh. Shadow and Vio **like** each other.'_

And then they _kissed._ And they didn't tell Red or Blue. Not a word. Did they not trust them? Or were they just scared?

_Oh, things are probably going downhill for the two of them. They were really quiet today._

Red rolls over in bed, grumbling. He buries his hands in his face and moans. His brain hurts.

_Vrrr. Vrrr._

Something vibrates in his left pocket. Red's head perks up. His phone. He turned it on right as school got out. He digs his hand in his pocket and fishes it out.

_1 unread message, _his phone says. Red presses the button that reads _view._

Just a message from his cousin, asking him how his first week of school was. He's about to text back when a sudden thought hits him.

_If Shadow can do something like that, why can't I?_

His fingers fly over the keys, typing out, _it was fine. gtg_

He presses _send_ and goes to his address book. He doesn't have many names, so the name he's looking for is right at the top.

_The week has been going well so far._

He presses a button and holds the phone up to his ear.

_But I know one thing that would make it even better._


	23. Blue ll Heart

Blue grimaces at the sight. "Why are _you_ here?"

The blonde girl gives a wide grin, dropping her bag and sitting down on a nearby chair. She kicks her feet back and forth, almost hypnotically, as she eyeballs Blue. "Hey there, Blue, my little man," she says teasingly. Blue's eye twitches without him noticing. The taller girl giggles. "Long time so see, huh?"

Blue rolls his eyes, making an indecent _pfft_ sound that blows his bangs out of place. He reaches up to fix the few hairs out of place. He always has been a neat freak. "_Happy_? To see _you_? Dream on." He glares daggers at her. "Hey, you didn't answer my question!"

She bats her big, black eyelashes at him. _She needs to back off on the mascara,_ thinks Blue.

"Isn't it obvious?" she purrs, bobbing her head to one side. "I don't have school for the next week. We're on break. So I came to visit my family." She rises from her seat, walks over, and pinches Blue's cheek. "I couldn't forget my darling baby brother, of course."

"Let go of me, Marina," Blue hisses, encouraging a light chuckle to escape from his sister's lips. She releases his cheek and sits back down.

"Okay, okay," Marina says, her laugh fluttery and rather _annoying_ to the younger boy. "But 'cha gotta tell me how things are going for you. Didja make any new friends?" she asks, making to attempt to hide her sarcasm. "Or is everyone still avoiding you like the plague?"

"I made friends," Blue tells her smugly as he sits down on the other end on the table, tossing his backpack down on the tile kitchen floor.

First Marina's eyes are wide, as if Blue's gone completely buggy. Then she smiles, her eyes still the size of tennis balls. Her smile twitches for a moment, and within a few seconds, she's on the floor, gasping for breath as she laughs her lungs out.

Blue should've seen that one coming, but she still finds himself peeved off at the sight. "Huh? Mari_na_! Stop laughing! I _mean_ it! Shut your damn trap right now! Marina! Marina! Marina..." Blue slumps back in his chair in defeat. "I meant what I said," he grumbles.

"Really?" Marina chirps, poking her head up over the top of the table.

"Yes!" Blue cries. "I said I made friends and I meant it!"

"Really? Who?"

"They're–" Before either one of them can get another word in, the phone rings, silencing them both. Most families would have talked over the noise, but the Grim family phone has an especially _loud _and _high-pitched _ringtone. It is not to be ignored. Or, more like, _not possible_ to ignore.

"_Agh!_ Somebody pick it up!" Blue yells, placing his hands over his ears. Marina follows this signal, both of them suppressing smiles. It's always their little routine to refuse to pick up the phone until their parents do, just to drive them nuts. And while Blue would never admit it, he had sort of _missed_ their silly little game.

The ringing comes to an abrupt halt, and their mother's voice can be heard, saying, "Hello?"

Blue chuckles, lowering his hands. "So, like I was saying, they're–"

"Blue," his mother saying, standing in the doorway, "your friend's calling." Blue gives Marina a self-satisfied smirk, as if to say, _Told you so._ She rolls her eyes and sticks her tongue out, complete with an immature"_nyaaa_" sound.

"Hello?" he greets as the phone is put into his grasp.

_"Hi, Blue. It's Red."_

Blue feels himself grow pink. He places a hand on his face in an attempt to hide it. He doesn't notice Marina stare at him with a maniac smirk, nor does he notice her slunk over to the other side of the kitchen...

Blue searches for the right words to say, but what comes out of his mouth... "Why didn't you call my cellphone?"

(Agh! Why'd you go and say that? Are you _trying_ to make him look like an idiot?)

_"I-I tried to, but you... didn't pick up."_

(...Great. Now you've made _yourself_ look like an idiot. Smooth moves, Blue. Smooth.)

"Oh, sorry. Guess I forgot to turn it on."

_"It's okay._"

(Gosh, even his _voice_ is cute... Ah! What're you thinking? Snap out of it!)

"So, um... Red... why did you call?"

_"Oh, yeah! I was wondering i-if you wanted to maybe go downtown with me on Sunday? We could get frozen yogurt, candy... the bookstore's downtown too. M-maybe we could even go to the movies."_

Normally Bluewould have said no. Normally he would have flat out rejected the boy. _Normally_ he would brush off the scathing memories of his past and hung up.

Goddesses, what has gotten _into_ him?

"Sure!"

(Oh, dammit. That sounded too eager.)

_"Really?"_

"Yeah..."

(Am I really _that_ happy? And– waitaminute!)

"Is this a date?" The words slip out before he can think of holding them in, and immediately he starts babbling. "I mean, not that I was hoping that it was a date– _because I wasn't!_– it's just, I mean... it kinda sounds like–"

From the other end of the line, Blue can hear Red giggle quietly. His blush grows deeper. He _knows _he's just screwed up.

_"Maybe."_

Blue's hand clutches the phone tighter. His face is _burning._

Another soft giggle.

_"See you tomorrow."_

_ Click._

Blue walks over to the receiver and places the phone in, all very head is spinning. He's hardly breathing. Is this a dream? Oh Goddesses, is this a dream? He's gotta find Marina. She pinches really hard. He turns around to go look for her and–

"Hey there!" Blue jumps a foot in the air. Marina hardly hides her laugh. She smirks as the giggles die down. "Who's this Red guy, _hmm?_"

"You were listening with the phone in the kitchen, weren't you?"

She nods enthusiastically. "Mmm-_hmmm_."

Blue isn't even all that shocked. With all that's been going on today– scratch that, _all week_– he doesn't even think he _can_ be shocked anymore. He's gotten used to it.

And of course, Marina is the only one who knows. She's the only one in Blue's family to ever know the truth, the whole truth, and nothing _but_ the truth.

"So...?" She wiggles her eyebrows. "You gonna tell me about him?"

Blue sighs, giving in. "Oh, fine. But you gotta _promise_ to keep this a secret!"

Marina's smile grows sincere. She draws an _x_ over her heart with her finger. "Cross my heart."


	24. Vio ll Mind

1 Vio is shaking. Literally shaking. It was 84 degrees outside today and he is literally _shaking._

_Snap out of it, snap out of it, _he chants over and over in his head. It only seems to make things worse.

It's as if life is slipping out from under him, and he's just going to drop dead any second now, falling into monochrome madness. But, oh wait– that last part already happened. He _has_ gone crazy, and his dark room looks black-and-white to his grey-blue eyes.

_Stop it. You're over-reacting._

(ahahahaha no i'm not)

Vio rolls over, breathing deeply. He hears shouting in his head, giving him an uncontrollable headache. But who could be shouting? Katie and Nathan are in their rooms, Mom's downstairs...

Memories. Vio knows, even in his weak mental state, that these yells and cries are just memories, replaying and re-replaying in his mind. They're stuck on repeat, leaving Vio screaming, "Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP," over the noise. Only his mind, however. So much for one mind to take in... too much, even for Vio.

Of course, "even" is relative. And since Vio knows of no one else going through any similar events... well, that itself cancels the "even" out.

So that just leaves Vio back to shaking, hugging his knees up to his chest, choking out sobs, and begging for mercy.

The key moments from his week are blurred with crystal clear edges. **(1)**

_"Can I go with you?"_

_" Neither are you, Vio!"_

_"I could be your friend."_

_"We're proud of you. Really."_

_"C'mon, Shadow, let's g– ... Sh-Shadow..."_

_"...And?"_

_"V-Vio...?"_

_"I-I can't... I can't... or-or I'll end up like him..."_

Vio wants to pretend it didn't happen, that it was all dream, but no. He's perfectly, certainly, truly, _madly_ aware that it wasn't. He can't just wake up from this nightmare. He's got to live in it. He's forced to live in a horrifying, grotesque mirror image of what his life once was. Some people talk about "living the dream."**(2)** Vio is living the nightmare.

_It didn't start like this,_ he reminds himself. _Everything was once alright..._

It started four years ago. Vio and his siblings had been living a perfectly peachy life until everything was torn to pieces. Vio still doesn't know who tore it up, whether it was Mom or Dad, but he wants to believe it was his father.

His father and mother met in high school, married out of love. Sometime wedged in between, however, his father became a high-school dropout. Dad used to tell the story many times, before the everything was gone, always with a faraway look in his eyes every time Mom's name was mentioned.

Why did Vio's father drop out...?

_Because he fell in love with Mom, _Vio retells the story in his head, sinking his head into his arms. He hits the stop button and sobs.

_Don't be so dramatic. It's not Dad's fault–_

(yes it is SHUT UP)

Vio bawls, screaming into his pillow. When did his mind become such an insane asylum?

(since shadow walker)

_But... he..._

(it's all his fault don't deny it)

_He.. He's..._

Vio darts up out of bed and rushes to his bathroom. In his mirror he spots an unrecognizable face with puffy eyes, tear stains, distorted white-blonde hair, and _bright red cheeks._

Vio makes up his mind.

**AN- This was really fun to write. Now you all know. Congratulations.**

**(1)- Ultimate Cookie Points to anyone who can correctly name the scene for each quote (not chapter) and who said it. (Hints- one of them you didn't hear half of. The last two are the same scene.)**

**(2)- MLP refrence YEAAAAAAHHHH~!**


	25. Shadow ll Note

"Why! Are! You! So! Stupid!" Shadow cries, smashing his face against a pillow. "You! Ruined! Your! Chance!" He finally flops down against the pillow, burying his head in it as if it can swallow him. Which, right now, doesn't sound so bad.

Shadow _really_ wishes he could have figured out the truth before he acted as brashly as he did. It was just a spur of the moment thing. Some ridiculously shocking realization. _A goddess-damned epiphany,_ he thinks, recalling Blue's face yesterday when the truth had come out.

What was he _thinking?_ His train of thought had probably gone something like this:

_My life is over. I'm DOOMED. Someone, please, kill me... Great, more people... Just don't look. No saving your pride now... "Shadow!" ...Wait. Is that...? V-Vio... "What happened?" At least __**somebody **__cares. Gosh, his hands are so soft... and warm... I-I can't believe I'm letting him see me cry... "What are you talking about?" Can't you see? I-it's my fault... I'm sorry. _

_ "Shadow. What you did is the bravest thing I've ever seen, and I don't want you to forget it. Ever. You, Blue, Red, and I would have never become friends if you hadn't done that. We're proud of you. Really."_ _...What's wrong with me? I-I can't cry anymore. H-he's smiling at me... Why can't I smile back? Ugh, I'm so confused...– agggh more ranch dressing! He's laughing... I-I'm smiling..._

_. . . . . . ._

_...I'm in love with Vio._

So that's where he's left off. He's in love with Vio, and by acting on some stupid impulse he ruined his chances with him. He's lost for words, he's clueless, he's hopeless, he's a freaking wreck.

Not only that, but he can't shake the feeling that he probably _stole_ Vio's _first kiss._ He kissed a guy, who was probably straight, stealing his first kiss, ruining their friendship, and making a fool of himself in front of the whole school. Just. Because. He. Was in. Stupid. Bloody. Love.

Shadow sits up suddenly. "My head hurts," he says to no one in particular. He bounds up out of bed and sits at his desk. He takes out a piece of paper, his favorite pen, and stares at the wall. He closes his eyes, trying to snowball his thoughts, grouping them together, getting the words right...

Got it!

Pen moves on paper, fast and fluid and flowing. When he's done, the page is filled with sprawling indigo cursive.

_Vio— _it reads,

_I know you'll never read this (considering I'm __not__ giving it to you), but I might as well write it down anyways._

_ I have a gut feeling you know, but I've fallen in love with you. Don't ask me why, don't ask me how, because the details are still fuzzy to me. All I know is that I can't get enough of this feeling._

_However, as you know, something's in the way. A lot of things, actually. I don't even know exactly what it is, but... but you don't want to be around me. I can understand. You must think I'm out to get you even though I barely know you, or whatever. I don't care. Really. I don't mind at all._ That was a lie.

_I just want you know that I'm scared. I'm falling, and I'm going to hit solid ground soon. I just don't know when. No matter what I do, I can't brace myself for the pain that's about to hit. So I hope that you'll find it in your heart to– oh, I know how hopeless it sounds– try and break my fall_.

_— Shadow_

It's not the best, but Vio will never see it. Shadow just had to get his thoughts all nice and organized, and he's always found writing to be the best way to do so. With a small smile, he opens his desk drawer and takes out a folder labeled: _Shadow's writing._ He eyes the note, urging himself to put it in with the other work.

But instead, he puts the folder away, gingerly folds the note in half, puts it in an envelope, writes _"Vio"_ on it, and slips it under his pillow for safe keeping.

Glancing at the clock, Shadow realizes it's quarter to midnight. And while he's always been a night owl, he must admit he is a _little_ tired. He wriggles himself under his sheets and flutters his eyelids closed.

...And he doesn't notice the pom-pom haired blur hovering outside the roof-side window.

The next morning, as memory washes over him, he lifts up his pillow to check for the note, knowing it'll become a habit.

His heart skips a beat.

Where's the note where's the note _where's the note?_

**AN- Okay, I have, what– two important announcements?**

**Well, first, as you might have noticed: I am officially half-way through the story! *confetti poppers* I'm so excited to continue writing. I've been getting lovely feedback so far. I'd specifically like to thank:**

** KTDLover– gave me my FIRST review for BMF!**

** CryBabyCry– better known as YerBlues99, I am her FANGIRL. I almost _died_ when I my first review from her.**

** Watermelon Juice– for loving Vio and Shadow. 'Nuff said.**

** msfcatlover–** **for giving me some great feedback! I always loved such specific comments about what was so good, it made me feel special!**

** Tanthachon25- for making me realize just how ANYONE can like my story. And also for listing me as one of his favorite authors, but I already thanked him for that.**

**But really, thanks to _every single one of you! _I never would have imagined that one thought of, "_hmm. What would Blue be like in modern day?" _would turn into THIS.**

** SECONDLY, I'm also going to be posting this on deviantART! ...Mainly because I haven't posted much there, so... yeah. ^^;; My account name is ~GlitterFluff07! Girly, I know. Enjoy!**


	26. Green ll Silent

**AN- Seriously, guys? I said "pom-pom hair". It should be OBVIOUS. On that note, if you figured it out, don't tell everyone. It's kinda funny to see you all confused. XD Anywho, watching Friendship is Magic while I type this...**

_"And don't let me catch you near him again!" Vaati called out to the retreating boys, shaking his fist._ _Green stood behind him, wide-eyed and speechless. It always ended up like this, whenever Green was bullied. Vaati came by and would always beat those fools into next week. Somehow they never learned their lesson._

_ "Thanks, Vaati_... _again," Green managed to squeak out at last. Vaati turned around, and with quick pacing, placed himself a few feet from Green._

_ Green winced as he received a_ _sharp smack to the face. He rubbed the offended cheek with his hand. "Why did y–"_

_ "**That's** for being such a push-over."_

Green stands at the edge of the sidewalk, staring. Why did he come here again? Wait, scratch that, he knows why he came here. He just doesn't know _why_ he thought it was a good idea.

His gaze is directed at a large, dark, Victorian-style home. It's been a while since he's come here. It feels only vaguely familiar now, with its grey curtains and plum paint. He breathes in and takes a step forward. Then a step back. Then another step forward. And another step back. Forward, back, forward, back. Arrrgh, can't he just make up his mind?

Finally deciding that enough is _enough_, Green dashes down the pathway, up the steps, and rings the doorbell. Of course, he begins to panic.

_Why did I do that? Why did I think this was a good idea? He'll probably just slam the door on me. You've already ruined things, there's no going back... right?_

At last, the door cracks open. Green doesn't have to guess who it is. After all, he picked the time when he knew both of Vaati's parents were out working. Vaati's eyes are wide for a second, before turning to thin slits. But they're still pure chocolate brown. So far, things are going well.

"What do you want?" Vaati mumbles grumpily.

"I...," Green feels his confidence waver, "I just wanted to... say I'm sorry."

Vaati stands still, with a blank expression, before growling. "Too late," he says with a snarl, "your apology is trivial and will not be accepted. Buh-bye," he finishes, beginning to close the door.

"Wait!" Green cries out desperately. _Last chance. _"I-I don't want this! I just want to be friends again! My life is a wreck without you! So just ple–"

"Your life is a wreck _because_ of me," Vaati points out, staring off into his living room. "Go. It's pointless for you to stay here."

"Okay...," Green trails off, feeling his last chance go down the drain, "but I just want to know _why._"

Vaati's head snaps back to Green's general direction. "Why what?"

"Why are you so rough on me? You've done things to others, I've seen. You push anyone who gets in your way. But it's never gone _this_ far. I was always your friend, and now that I get in your way, you're the hardest on _me._ It just doesn't make sense."

The door swings all the way open. A smirk is firmly planted on Vaati's face.

"Green...," he begins, shaking his head.

"You are so smart." Green flinches at the unexpected compliment.

"And yet so stupid."

_"Hey," Green whined at the insult, "I am not a push-ov–" He was stopped suddenly as two pale arms found their way around his neck. Green blinked as he found himself pulled close to Vaati, who then, briefly thereafter, pushed him away._

_ "And that's for scaring me."_

Before Green can say a word, Vaati's grabbed Green's wrists and pulled his forward. And before Green can even let out a cry of surprise, Vaati's lips meet his.

Vaati is kissing him. Vaati is _kissing _him.

Green doesn't want this. No, he does not want this at all. But Vaati is the first to pull away, with a strong smirk and weak eyes. He takes a step back through the threshold, into his house.

"You missed your chance." His voice cracks at the last word, and before the door slams shut, Green sees Vaati's face scrunch into a look of anxiety and regret.

Green stands at the doorway for longer than he should. If he listens closely, he can hear the silent sobs coming from the other side of the door.

**AN- I know for a fact _none of you_ saw that coming. Don't you worry, that's the biggest plot twist I have planned. The funny thing is, I didn't decide to do this until AFTER I wrote Green's last chapter, so I scattered in hints without meaning to. SILLY ME. XD**

**Anyways, with this land mark of a chapter, I have yet another announcement to make: a sub-story to Break My Fall! The chapters will come out along with these remaining ones. It's basically a retelling of the story with Vaati and Zelda point of views, with a lot of never-before-told scenes. It's gonna be interesting, alright. The title, you ask? _Lantern Hearts._ **


	27. Red ll Melty

**AN- Okay guys sorrrrrrry for my hiatus. I really wanted to write more, but... well, I'm lazy, to put it simply. But anyways, I've got some GREAT stuff planned, especially with Red and Blue, so let's get started!**

**PS- I sort of lied to you guys about something. See if you can figure out what. (It would have to be a guess, because there's no proof that I lied to you about it– yet.)**

Red checks his watch. _2:16._ _I said two o'clock, so where's Blue?_

Oh, wait; there he is. He's running his way, panting. He looks nice in his ripped vest and faded jeans. Red smiles at him. "Hi, Blue!"

"Hey," he breathes as he stops, resting his hands on his knees. "Sorry I'm late. My sister... she kept on stopping me at the door..."

Red blinks. "You have a sister?"

Blue nods. "A real pain. She's in college, but she's staying over for the week."

Red smiles. He can't relate– he's always been an only child, as far as he knows. Then again, who can say? _I really don't know..._

"Something wrong?" Red suddenly realizes he's been staring at the ground. His head darts up, and he pretends to meet Blue's gaze. But he doesn't.

"Nah, I'm fine." The scary part is that Red can't tell if it's the truth or not. The bad feelings are over now– he was one of the lucky ones; Diana and Xavier love him. So why is it that he still feels sad? Is it because he feels... kind of lost in himself?

_Nah, it's fine. I'm fine._

Blue raises an eyebrow warily. "Okay," he smiles. "So where you wanna go?"

Red feels his lips curl up, his bad feeling washing away like dust blown in the air. _This is why I love Blue... he's so much nicer than he seems, and the thought of that always puts me in a good mood. _"Well," he says, tapping his chin, "we could buy candy, and then get frozen yogurt and use the candy as toppings."

Blue's eyes light up, almost in surprise. "That's a really good idea," he says.

Color nips at Red's cheeks. "Thanks. Me and m-my," a fraction of a pause, "_mom_ used to do that all the time."

"Well," says Blue, "that would be fun." Red smiles, and they begin to walk towards the shop. "So I guess you have a sweet tooth, huh?" He elbows Red slightly, making him giggle.

"Yeah... I can't help it, really."

Blue laughs. "Do you get cavities?"

Red nods slightly. "But not too many. I got my first one when I was twelve."

Blue gawks. "_Twelve_? I got my first one at age _four_!"

Red giggles, raising a hand over his mouth to muffle it. "I guess I'm just one of the lucky ones."

_One of the lucky ones..._

_For most of them it took so much longer. Years and years._

Red and Blue walk into the shop– a candy store. Red gets his favorite strawberry-flavored malt balls, while Blue buys sour candy. He lets Red try one, and he immediately coughs from the shock his taste buds are exposed to. Red can't help but laugh at the thought of someone _actually_ eating candy_ that _sour with frozen yogurt

_It took me four years before I ended up with Diana and Xavier. For most it's up to ten years. _

Then they go to Red's favorite make-your-own frozen yogurt sundae shop. They each make different combinations; for Red, it's chocolate with strawberry sauce and gummy bears; for Blue, it's blueberry with chocolate sprinkles and a cherry on top.

_I... I should feel happy, but... I just feel guilty that it was me and not someone else... _

They decide to eat outside, considering it's so nice out, and sit on a bench. It secretly reminds Red of the first time they ate lunch together– just before Vio and Shadow befriended them and everything changed. For the best or the worst, Red's not sure. Him and Blue talk, but Red can't seem to focus on the conversation. It's not sinking in.

_Someone else could've ended up with such a great couple... not me... I didn't deserve something so great... I didn't do anything to deserve that!_

Red's frozen yogurt cup falls tothe ground, accompanied with a sharp _clack_. The remains splatter everywhere, a few droplets of the melted mix landing on Red's new sneakers.

Blue turns to him and he bends down and picks up the Styrofoam cup. "Gosh, you're clumsy today, huh?"

Red's eyes fill with tears, and before he can stop them, they're sliding down his cheeks, blurring his vision. The world spins. His knees shake, and he brings them up to his chest. Everything is happening faster than he can comprehend, and it scares him. It also makes his feel weak, _like I'm a little five-year-old who can't control his emotions._

Blue gapes at him in shock. "_Woah._ Red. It's just ice cream– I-I mean frozen yogurt. There wasn't even that much anyways," he says, his voice blended with confusion, exasperation, and so, _so much_ concern.

"Th-that's not w-why I'm cr-crying...," Red finally chokes out. Tears freely run down his face now, and he's now aware that he _can't_ control his feelings. _So how am I any different from the little brat screaming and running around the play-structure?_

"...Then why are you crying?" Blue says slowly. Red's hands are torn away from his eyes, and it is only now that he realizes Blue's moved closer to him. He hadn't been close enough before to grab Red's wrists, but he certainly was now.

"I-I...," he pauses. "...I don't wanna tell you."

"Red...," Blue grumbles ominously. Red cowers. _Blue's nice; really, really nice; but he still has the power to scare me sometimes._

"I-it's just... It scares me. I-I just don't wanna say it."

Blue hardens his gaze on Red for a beat, then softens it. "L-listen Red. I'm gonna tell you a secret– a secret that I won't tell just _anyone_– but only because I trust you. Do...," he hesitates, "...do you trust me?"

Red nods urgently. Not because he's scared, but because he _does_ trust awful lot. _And something tells me that whatever Blue wants to say, he's building up a lot of courage to say it._ And it really must be a big deal, because Blue already has a _lot_ of courage.

"O-okay," Blue blurts out, making the word sound forced. "Red...?"

Silence. Blue doesn't stare at Red; no, it looks like he's staring at the background– behind Red. Funny how not so long ago Red considered _himself_ to be the background.

"Yeah?"

More silence, before the words spill out like the melty remains of frozen yogurt from the Styrofoam cup–

"I-I'm gay."

**AN- Since last chapter was such a HUGE plot twist, I decided to give you guys an UN-plot twist! Because c'mon, we ALL KNEW Blue's sexuality~! XD T minus one chapter till RedXBlue awesomeness! :D Hope you liked it– it was easier to write than I had expected!**


	28. Blue ll Never

**AN- Time: 12:44 AM. Sometimes you just can't wait any longer.**

**Sorry if this whole chapter ends up being a fail. I've been stressing about it since the very beginning, so it **_**has to be just so.**_

"_Um, I..." Blue struggled to get the words out._

"_Just spit it out already!" the other boy giggled, his brown eyes sparkling._

_Those few words, while seeming insignificant, popped the bubble lingering in Blue's chest. Suddenly all of his feelings were released, floating freely, and his world was lips pressed against lips._

_It wasn't until he backed away– until he saw the shocked and disgusted stares of his classmates– that he realized he had done something wrong. But he was only in third grade; his parents never talked to him about this stuff!_

_Still, he should've known._

"What...?" Red says in a strained squeak. "Just... just like Shadow?"

"I don't know, I think Shadow's bi...," is the simple nonsense that spouts out of Blue's mouth. **(1)**

"Oh...," Red mumbles. Awkward silence ensues until Red finally whispers–

"I-I think I am, too..."

Blue grows still. Red doesn't talk about himself much, and now that he does, Blue feels a swelling in his chest, moving up and down.

"Is _that_ why you were crying?"

Red shakes his head violently, as if he's trying to get a bug out of his hair without actually touching it. Blue scowls.

"Then what is it?" Blue knows he's being unreasonable; nosy, even– that he has no right to go about Red's business like this– but he just can't understand why Red can't tell him! Blue's spilled his deepest, darkest secret (well, most of it, that is), so why can't Red do the same?

"I-I-I can't tell you," Red insists, avoiding Blue's eyes.

"Bullcrap," Blue mutters, ignoring the thin layer of water coating Red's lower eyelid. "You _can_ tell me, you just don't _want_ to!" He stands up, glaring down at Red, who is still on the bench, gazing up at him with eyes that reflect the sky. "I trust you, Red. Why can't you trust me?"

"B-because I'm not ready to!" Red shrieks, rising from the bench.

Blue is forced to ignore the stares simmering at his back. _Mind your own business,_ he thinks defiantly.

"Blue...," Red sighs, looking at him straight-on. "I trust you– I really do– but, it's just... I'm not ready to tell you some things yet."

"_What_ things?" Blue snaps, dismissing the pang of guilt he gets when Red flinches.

"It's personal...," Red murmurs, sitting down on the bench. Blue feels his anger slide out of him. Red is upset, and he only wants to help. But how can he help if Red won't tell him what's wrong? On the other hand, Blue realizes; he loves Red, he _does_...

...But how can he show Red that when he can't _tell_ him?

No, no, no. Last time he tried that, it ended in disaster. But if that had never happened... lead up the chain of events... he never would have become friends with Red... and never would have fallen in love again.

It's a mixed bag, and Blue sits beside Red to let himself absorb it all.

"Red," he forces himself to say, "listen, I just wanted to help."

"How?" Red says, his voice laced with anger– or frustration, maybe. Oh goddesses, Blue _hopes_ it's only frustration.

"By making you feel better," Blue says simply, shrugging. Red turns to him slowly and gives him a smile– and it's the strangest smile Blue's ever seen. So full of life and happiness, like all of Red's smiles, yet there's something hidden behind there– something Red doesn't want him to know.

"You know, Blue, you're not as bad as everyone says you are," he pauses, and it's killing Blue. "In fact, you're actually really nice."

Blue fights the red wave rushing to his face, not just because Red complimented him, but because he knows _now is the perfect time. _Go on, tell him how you feel. He's not a demon, he won't strike you down. Maybe he likes you too. You'll never know unless you find out.

"R-Red?" he tries not to sound hesitant, and in his eagerness, stutters a bit.

"Yeah?"

"Um, I..." The words replay in his head. _"Um, I..."_

Red waits patiently. He doesn't urge Blue to go on, just sits and waits.

_Oh screw words. I can do better._

So he reaches out, and pulls Red into a tight hug. Red gasps at the contact, but doesn't push away. Blue backs up as much as he can, while still keeping his arms around Red, and kisses him on the cheek.

Well, it was _supposed_ to be on the cheek. Instead, it lands on Red's jaw line, and Blue immediately jumps away, mortified. **(2)** Red stares past Blue in a daze, before finally regaining his attention and staring straight at Blue.

"Wha... huh?" Red mumbles in his struggle to form a coherent reply.

"I-I, I really like you," Blue explains, dashing through the words. "More than I... should."

Red's reaction is unexpected. He hops out of his seat and stands beside Blue. Flinging his arms around Blue's neck, he chirps, "Oh, Blue, do you really like me? Really, really?"

"Y-yes, _really!_" Blue exclaims, turning bright pink. He struggles to detatch Red. "Now get off!"

Red obeys, stepping back with a wide grin on his face. And to somehow _break_ the awkward silence, Red does the worst– and best– possible thing.

He leans forward and kisses Blue.

Blue's eyes almost instantly flutter shut, and he grabs ahold of Red's shoulder's pulling his closer.

_This._ This is better than being the bully. This is better than being the villain. This is better than being the bad guy. Because the bad guy doesn't get the girl.

And the bad guy _certainly_ never gets the boy.

**(1)- Yes, he is.**

**(2)- The whole hugging and accidentally kissing on the neck– yeah, true story. XD Go me. I was SO embarrassed, I ran away.**


	29. Vio ll Zombie

**AN- Next chapter already? Yaaaaaaaay~! It's Vio's time to shine again!** **...Or drown in insanity, either way! :D**

**Oh, by the way, **_**Lantern Hearts**_** has begun! The first chapter is out, and I hope you'll all enjoy it! (Vaati's honestly my favorite character in this fic, second is Marina.)**

Vio groans as he wakes up and takes in his surroundings. He's never been a morning person, and today is much worse than any other, ordinary morning. Today, he's in the hellzone.

He's at his father's house.

His mother had to go off on a short business trip, and in doing so, had to leave her children– Vio and his younger twin siblings, Katie and Nathan– at their father's house. For the whole week. _Uggghh..._

(stupid business trip)

_Oh, quit complaining. It's not __**that**__ bad..._

(your life is a disaster movie and you say it's NOT THAT BAD? ha!)

_Look on the bright side._

(what bright side?)

It's not even a house. It's an apartment, and Vio hates it compared to the large, spacious home his mother owns.

The apartment is so small, in fact, that Vio is forced to share a room with Katie and Nathan, who are sharing a bed. The two of them don't seem to mind, though. They're extremely close. Speaking of which, Vio has actually caught Katie watching an anime with somewhat incestuous twins. **(1)** Okay, maybe not _caught_. More like, watched it with her. But that's beside the point.

"Get up, you two," Vio moans. He feels like a zombie– stuck in some mutated shell of what he once was, trapped and wanting _out_.

Nathan rises and yawns. He blinks a few times, then turns to Katie, who is scrunched up in a ball, squeezing her _Hotasun Moko _plush tight. **(2)** "Wake up," he demands, nudging her.

"Five more minutes...," she murmurs. Nathan laughs before shoving her out of the bed. She lands on the floor in a heap of tangled blankets, Moko falling a few feet in front of her. Moko, though sprawled on the floor, is still smiling, because she's a doll and that adorable little smile is permanently plastered across her plush face. But if Moko was real, would she really be all that happy on the inside?

_You can lie without saying anything,_ thinks Vio fatalistically.

(no it's not really lying unless you tell it- we're not lying)

At this point Nathan has started changing into one of his all-too-typical outfits– a shirt and sports shorts– while Katie distracting herself by taking _much _too long deciding what she's going to wear. She rummages through her suitcase frantically.

"Are you up yet?" Vio's father calls, giving Vio an impending sense of doom.

"Of course we are!" Katie and Nathan chorus.

"Okay, well hurry it up! Pancakes for breakfast!" While Katie gasps, delighted, and Nathan rushes downstairs, Vio decides he's better off without breakfast. Or maybe he'll just eat a banana or something.

"Vi-chan?"

"Don't call me that."

Katie smiles a little. "You're a grumpier grape than usual." Vio almost groans. While Katie calls him "_Vi-chan_", Nathan likes to call him "_grape_". It's silly, and Vio kind of enjoys it, but right now he doesn't want to deal with silly stuff.

"Yes, well, I'm just not in a good mood this morning."

"You're not in a good mood _any_ morning," Katie points out matter-of-factly.

"...Please, stop talking."

"Wha– hey, I'm sorry!"

"Whatever, I don't really care!"

Katie pouts and narrows her eyes, staring at Vio like he's a puzzle she needs to solve. "Is something wrong...?"

"No," is Vio's immediate answer.

"It _sounds_ like something's wrong..."

"Don't judge a book by it's cover," Vio responds.

Katie sighs. "Fine." She stands up with an armful of clothes– her _Crewgirl Luna_ shirt **(3)** and a navy blue skirt– and eyeballs him. "But if you ever need my help, just tell me."

"Fine, sure, whatever." He plans not to take her up on that offer.

She makes a motion reminding Vio of a sigh, and trots out of the room.

"Vio! You coming down?" his dad calls.

Vio almost groans, feeling the zombie qualities wash over him again. "Yes, _Father_!"

**AN- But you know, Katie's pretty awesome, too. :D**

**(1)- Guess the reference! Earns you 12 Ultimate Cookie Points!**

**(2)- Guess the reference #2! Earns you 7 Ultimate Cookie Points!**

**(3)- Guess the reference #3! Earns you 9 Ultimate Cookie Points!**

**Remember to check out **_**Lantern Hearts**_**, everyone!**


	30. Shadow ll Seven

**AN- Wow! Another chapter ALREADY? Consider it a treat. ;)**

**Oh, and I have a little poll on my profile about what I should do after Break My Fall. Pleaspleaseplease take it, I wanna get some opinions.**

Number one was in second grade. The best friend who promised to keep in touch after Shadow moved. He never did.

Number two was in third grade. The boy who he was friends with out of school, but never in school. Shadow was mercilessly ignored.

Number three was in fifth grade. The one he had tried to reason with, the one who left for reasons unknown. Shadow couldn't sleep for months.

Numbers four and five were in seventh grade. The two best friends he simply played the third wheel for, and in return, they talked behind his back. Shadow cried for two hours in the counselor's office and never told his parents why.

Number six was in ninth grade, just last year. The new girl he had befriended because he had been in her place plenty of times. Two days later she was hanging out with the popular crowd.

Red and Blue arrive at their usual meeting spot together. Okay, all seems normal. _Except_ Red seems extra cheery, and Blue is turning four different shades of pink. Shadow glances down a bit and notices that Blue's hand is gripping Red's protectively.

"Well, well, well," Shadow mews. "What do we have _here_?"

"Shut up," Blue commands. "Just– shut up."

"Hey, I don't mean anything bad by it. You two are cute." He smirks. "And plus your raging crush on Red was _all too _obvious."

Blue growls. "Shut it!"

Red giggles quietly. "Relax Blue, he's just being Shadow." His cheeks turn a light pink. "I probably made it pretty obvious, too," he all but whispers.

"Whatever!" Blue cries before Shadow can get another word in. "Where's _Vio_?" Shadow slumps against the wall in discomfort. He really doesn't want to see Vio. He hasn't wanted to since the kiss. Okay, he _has_, but he's too scared to actually _talk_ to him. Too awkward.

But– oh, _joy_– here comes Vio now. Shadow stands his ground, feeling his heart pick up pace. He lets the sleeves of his black turtle-neck swallow his hands.

"Vio!" Red calls out, letting go of Blue's hand and darting over to Vio. "You'll never guess!"

Vio pushes past him, visibly surprising Red. "Vio...?"

"Hey!" Blue snaps. "Red was _talking_ to you! You can't just–"

"I'm not in the _mood_ for guessing games," Vio says darkly. Blue is unusually quiet.

Vio continues to walk forward until he's positioned himself in front of Shadow. Shadow feels his stomach churn. _Oh, no..._

Vio skips to the point. "I've figured out how you feel about me, Shadow, and frankly, I don't feel the same way."

"I know...," Shadow mumbles, feeling his face grow warm. He saw this coming, he really did. So why does he feel so disappointed? ...Maybe because what he knows is different than what he wants?

"Good," Vio simply replies, turning around. "I'll see you during science."

"B-but what about lunch?" Shadow gawks. "And break's not over yet!" No matter how awkward it is, Shadow doesn't want Vio to leave. No, that's not what he wants at all.

Vio turns around and glares at him. But to Vio, it almost looks like he's not angry at him. Maybe he's angry at someone else? But who else could he be angry with...? "I'll pass. I'm better off on my own."

"But Vio, don't you wanna take down Vaati?" Red whimpers.

Vio stands still, his back facing them. His breathing is rigid, just like the day he stared at Shadow with wide eyes and pale cheeks. It's much less prominent, but Shadow notices. "No. Vaati never caused me much trouble. No, you three have been messing up my studies, messing up life since day one. ...It's done. _Over._ I don't want to be friends anymore."

Shadow feels the world slipping away from under his feet. Not for the first time, he notices the similarities in his friend's appearances, and now that he looks at Vio, he feels like he's looking in a broken mirror. The broken glass fills his eyes, dropping to the ground and shattering once more.

Red stares in shock, while Blue cries out, "You dirty traitor! I _knew_ it! All of that _book _learning rotted away your morals!" He struggles to catch his breath while still ranting at Vio, approaching him at a steady pace. His hands are curled up into fists. "Now I'm gonna... teach you a lesson..."

"N-no, Blue!" Shadow interrupts, reaching a hand out to stop him. "Le... let him go." He covers his face with his hands, spilling out all of his pent-up emotions. Red, tears brimming his eyes, wraps his arms around Shadow reassuringly. Blue walks back and places a hand on Shadow's shoulder. Shadow knows Blue isn't the hugging type, and he's fine with this being the best he can offer. It's comforting nonetheless.

And when Shadow moves his hands away from his eyes, breathing heavily with swollen eyes and a sore throat– he sees Vio, about to walk away, taking one last look back at the three of them.

_Goodbye._

And as he stands there, surrounded by the two best friends he's ever had, numbers four and five come to his mind.

_No... no. Red and Blue are good friends. They won't leave me. They won't forget about me. They won't drift away..._

_I don't wanna play the third wheel._

Number seven was in tenth grade. Vio Evenich, who stole his heart and stabbed him in the back, leaving him to die. Funny how at that point Shadow almost _wanted_ to die.

And people say seven is a lucky number.

**AN- Three-fifths through, everyone! Only twenty chapters left! This has been such a wild ride... I'll be sad when it's over.**

**Remember to take the poll! Please!**


	31. Green ll Absolutely

**AN- Omigosh, I was **_**totally**_** gonna type this yesterday... but I forgot. XD Moving on!**

Green has no idea what he's doing. All he knows is that his parents are gone, Aryll's at a friend's house, and some strange force is taking control of his body, gnawing on his skin from the inside out, filling him with vile toxins. What is it telling him?

_Do it._

Green rushes to the kitchen. He quickly finds what he's looking for, and it frightens him with its dark handle and gleaming metal. He holds it gingerly as he forces himself to slowly walk to the bathroom.

Green had wanted to go to the library. Vaati had simply wanted to go with him. If Green hadn't decided to go... Well, this whole wreck could have been avoided.

It's not like Vaati was _really_ angry at Red; or anyone, except maybe Green. Vaati must have been frustrated, and being Vaati, he took it out on others. Shadow and Blue only made it all worse.

And Vaati _loved_ him. Green can hardly believe it, but... Vaati loved Green. Maybe he still does. And sure, Green liked Vaati, but not like _that_... The problem was that when Green decided to stop being friends with Vaati, he didn't just tear their friendship apart—

He broke Vaati's heart.

Of course. Of _course_ that was why Vaati was so harsh with him! Green ripped him to pieces, so naturally Vaati was furious. And like always he swore revenge.

It also explains something else, something that had always caught Green's attention. Vaati had never shown much kindness towards Zelda. He never seemed to like her much, and always seemed to get in the way whenever Green was having a perfect moment with her.

"_You like her, don't you? ...And I don't mean_ _as a friend, you know."_

That alone should have told Green everything. Now he feels like a complete idiot for not understanding his friend's feelings.

It's his fault Zelda can't run for student council. It's his fault Aryll's being bullied. It's his fault Vaati is falling apart. It's his fault Shadow was crying at break today. **(1)**

He has to be a big, strong brother for Aryll... but how can he be that when he feels small and weak?

_I'm a terrible brother, terrible friend, terrible person,_ he thinks as he shuts the door and locks it behind him. _I can't keep her safe, I broke his heart, I ruined their lives._

He pulls down the sleeve of his jacket. He clutches the handle. He tries to breathe, but it all gets caught in his throat. He hopes he doesn't throw up again. The force takes over him again, bringing one hand closer to the other. He winces as the cold metal splits his skin. He inspects the red gash, breathing hard. _I'll never do this again, _part of him thinks, while the other side pleads, _No. You deserve it._

Does he really? Is this what he wants? Does he _want_ to hurt himself?

He doesn't know. He doesn't know anything anymore. His mind is an empty canvas, his emotions built up in clumps of paint on the palette, but not expressed on the easel; not connecting with his brain.

Green has absolutely _no idea_ what he's doing.

**AN- I apologize if I just made you really depressed. *hugs* Don't worry** **guys, I **_**will not**_** kill Green off. NEVER IN MY LIFE.**

**But on another note–! TAKE. THE. DAMN. POLL. NOOWWW. You have some time, but seriously, I wanna know! What should I do once this story is done? (Not Lantern Hearts, that'll be done by then...) BTW, just looked at the poll results. Who voted for "all the Links wanting to get it with Green"? Whoever you are, I LOVE YOU.**


	32. Red ll Redial

When Red gets home, the first thing he does is take out his phone. Not because he's obsessed or anything. Red barely texts, and honestly he doesn't use his phone all that often at all._ But this is an __**emergency.**_

He flops on his bed and scrolls through his contacts. Unlike Blue, this particular name is at the end of the list. Maybe he would have been better off just typing the name so his phone would lead him directly to it, but Red wants to build up suspense. ...Okay, he's actually sort of worried about calling. But he really, _really_ wants to make things right, especially for Shadow.

Shadow acts strong, but Red can see the cracks in his shell. Shadow wants to make a change, and that starts with taking down Vaati. But Shadow can be rather shy, especially when it comes to Vio. Red is like that, too, and that's why he understands what Shadow's going through.

Today the shell seemed to crumble away when Vio announced he no longer has any interest in being friends with Red, Blue, or Shadow. _But Shadow the most, _Red thinks. Shadow is heart-broken, and Red wants only to set things straight, and talk some sense into his friend.

Friend, as in not Shadow, but Vio. Red presses the button that says _call_. He holds the phone up to his ear and waits as the _brrrring brrrring _is heard. _Maybe he won't even pick up. Maybe I can't change anything._

But, at last– _"Hello?"_

Red feels the nervousness in the pit of his stomach, but tries his best to banish it. "Vio? It's Red."

Red hears a slight muffled sound, as if Vio is clutching the phone tighter. _"Oh." _Silence. From the other side of the line, Vio sighs. _"Make this quick."_

"What's wrong?" Red asks.

_"What's __**wrong**__?" _Vio echoes.

"Um... yes?"

_"I've already told you. You were all getting in my way."_

"No, we weren't! We want to help!"

Vio is quiet. _I have to make him understand. I... I __**know**__ he likes Shadow!_

"Vio... Shadow is heartbroken, really."

_"He should be."_

"That's not very nice."

_"..."_

"Vio, what's going on? Is something making you upset?"

_"...No."_ _Yes, there is. Don't lie to me._

"Vio. Are you sure?"

_"Yes."_

"Do... do you hate Shadow?"

_"He kissed me without warning, brought back bad memories, and—"_

"So something _is_ wrong."

_"...No. Nothing's wrong."_

Red grips the phone, frowning. "Vio... what kind of memories?"

_"That's none of your business."_

Red is reminded of his behavior a few days ago, when Blue had asked him what made him cry. Red suddenly begins to understand how Blue felt when he demanded to know the truth.

Red scans through his own memories of the last week. One moment stands out in particular. _Vio said he didn't want to end up like "him". But who is "him"?_

Well, that at least tells Red one thing. "Vio, are you afraid of falling in love with Shadow?"

_"I-I haven't...!"_

"I never said that. I just asked if you were scared of it."

_"...I'm not."_ _You are._

But why would Vio be so afraid of falling in love? Red knows for a _fact_ Vio has never dated anyone before. He's been in school with Vio since first grade. Red has always known all the gossip, and if there's one thing he knows, it's that Vio is normally anti-social. The fact that Shadow was able to change that is a miracle in Red's eyes.

But either way, it had to have been a bad experience. And if it wasn't someone _Vio_ dated, and wasn't someone one of his non-existent _friends_ dated, then...

It hits Red so hard that he gasps in pain.

"Vio... are your parents divorced?"

Silence on the other side of the line. _Click._

Red knows Vio well enough to know that _"no"_ means _"yes"_. So this _must_ be a yes, whether Vio would like to admit it or not.

_And he's not getting away this time._

Red hits _redial_.


	33. Blue ll Try

**AN- I know, I know, I should do the next chapter of Lantern Hearts. (Chapter 2 is up, by the way.) But... well, I wanna work on this instead.**

"_I'm not in the __**mood**__ for guessing games!" the boy cried out, eyes shut tight, fists clenched. "Just tell me the truth!"_

"_I..." Blue cowered. His best friend normally didn't act like this._ _He was normally sweet and smart and kind... what happened? "I-I love you."_

_The boy opened his eyes slightly, and suddenly Blue felt as if the whole world was red, not just one specific area._

"_That's all I needed to know."_

_And he walked off, never to speak a word to Blue again._

_Until the former went to far, and Blue had to intervene. Of course, that only led to disaster._

"Um, Blue?" Marina stands in the doorway of Blue's room, shifting back and forth warily. Her eyes glimmer with worry. "Someone's here to see you, but you're not gonna like who it is..."

Blue raises and eyebrow and stands, walking away from his room, away from Marina, into the living room, and–

_Ho—ly. Crap._

"What the hell are you doing here, Vaati?"

Vaati smirks. "I'm afraid that's classified information."

Blue rolls his eyes. "You're gonna have to tell me to get what you want, genius."

"Oh, is that so?"

"Um, _yeah_?"

Vaati's smirk grows wider. "I guess you're right." His tone switches from smug to teasing, but the smirk remains the same. "But I can only tell you if you come outside."

"No."

"Come outside _now_ or you'll be in deeper sh*t than ever before."

Blue groans and steps outside. Vaati quickly closes the door behind them. Blue glares at him. "What stunt are you trying to pull?"

Vaati's eyes are wide and creepily innocent. "No stunt. Just an offer."

Blue narrows his eyes more. He doesn't like the sound of this. "Offer?"

Vaati nods, the smirk never leaving his pale face. "I've been thinking Blue, and I've decided I might want to take you under my wing."

_What? I-I mean... __**what?**__ Vaati wants __**me **__to be his stupid apprentice or whatever? After all I've done to him? After I ruined his life? After he ruined __**my**__ life?_

"Not happening," Blue says after very little thought.

Vaati _almost_ falters, Blue can tell. But he quickly picks himself back up. "Oh, come on. It'll be just like old times." He wraps an arm around Blue's shoulder. Blue feels shivers rush through him at the contact. But they're not _scared _shivers. They're something else. "You know you want to."

And part of Blue _does_ want to; part of Blue _does_ want to be friends with Vaati again. Except the other part of him knows they won't really be friends; he'll just be doing Vaati's bidding. Not like old times at all. That, and Blue thought it was all too late to go back. He thought Vaati hated his guts. He was _sure_ of it.

"No," Blue grumbles. "You're trying to turn me against my _real_ friends."

Vaati's arm slides away, as if he were going to just leave, but instead his hands latch onto Blue's shoulders. Suddenly Blue finds himself face-to-face with Vaati, in a position he had only been in for a fraction of a second once before. Except Vaati wasn't looking at him like _this_.

"Let go," Blue immediately snaps.

"Blue... Remember in third grade...?"

Blue grows still. _Don't you __**dare **__bring up third grade, you demon!_

"...When you kissed me?"

Blue stares at his shoes as his face grows warm in embarrassment. "Yeah. What of it?"

Vaati takes one hand off of Blue's shoulder, and uses it to tilt Blue's chin up, forcing Blue to look at him. "So you said you loved me. What happened?"

_You changed, that's what happened, _Blue thinks bitterly. But the feelings are still buried deep down there, and right now they're unearthing themselves, causing his heart to feel like it's going to pound out of his chest.

And before Blue can utter a single word, Vaati attacks his neck with kisses. Blue's face instantly heats to burning temperatures, and he struggles to breath while biting his lip. He will _not_ sigh, or moan, or whimper under Vaati's control. He will snap out of it and push Vaati away _right now_. But Blue's body won't obey his thoughts, and he tilts his head to allow Vaati access to more of his neck.

What is _wrong_ with him?

Vaati continues vigorously– so vigorously, in fact, that Blue fails to hold back a stumbled, "V-V-Vaati..." Vaati pulls away and leans in slightly, beginning to close his eyes. Bleu suddenly realizes how damn close Vaati's lips are to his.

"Blue...," Vaati says, his red eyes hypnotic and he leans in closer. "You still want me, don't you?"

"I-I..." _... I... I do..._

But wait. Hypnotic red eyes.

Red. Red! _Red! _

Just as Blue's lips brush against Vaati's, he shoves Vaati away, sending him tumbling to the ground. Vaati snarls as he looks back up at him.

"And I thought you were actually giving in," he hisses.

"Not a chance. I know who my friends _really _are. And they're special to me, unlike you."

Vaati glares at Blue, not yet picking himself back up– this time literally.

"And for the record, the Vaati I fell in love with was a much different Vaati. That's not who you are anymore."

Vaati's eyes grow wide and sparkling brown. Then he narrows them, and they're bright crimson. "I will get my revenge."

This time, Blue's the one who's smirking. "Try me."

**AN- WOAH, NOW WAIT JUST A MINUTE. I never hinted at this, did I?**

**REWIND!**

"_Just spit it out already!" the other boy giggled, his __**brown eyes**__ sparkling._- Chapter 28.

_"I saw what you did," Blue continues, dropping the broom and walking up to him._

_"I don't know what you're talking about," Vaati is trying to sound confident, but Shadow hears__** his voice waver**__._- Chapter 5

**I did, whether I meant to or not. (First one I did, second I didn't.) But still, you guys should be shocked as hell. I said GreenXVaati would be the biggest plot twist, but... I guess not.**

**In other news, this chapter was really fun to write.**


	34. Vio ll Long

**AN- OMIGOD GUYS I'M SO SORRY!** **I'm had so much free time, but... I've been obsessing over Invader Zim. Sorry. (But seriously, I freaking love that show.)**

**Oh, right, almost forgot!** _**Lantern Hearts**_** is on hold for a while... until I finish this story. I really wanna finish this by July 23****rd**** (my birthday), and LH is only getting in my way. Because I know you guys all care about this more than that. Better to focus on them one at a time.**

**I've also been writing a lot of other things. I have a few one shots on the way. One is Invader Zim, one is Friendship is Magic, and the last one is Four Swords. Basically it's about Vio playing abusive mind games on... well, two of the Links. Guess who!**

Vio rests his head on his pillow and sighs. He sighs, letting go of all of his stress and frustration, before inhaling it back in. He lets it sit there, in his ribcage, steadily and forcefully beating againsthis chest.

Yesterday, after Vio hung up, Red called him fourteen times. _Fourteen times! _Nobody is _that_ damn persistent. ...Except, unfortunately, for Red. Luckily, Vio is smart enough to know that his phone can be turned on silent.

_Where did it all go wrong...?_

(shadow walker...)

_I know, I know. Just please, be quiet. I don't want to talk about him._

("talk"? I'm your sub-conscious. wow, you really HAVE gone crazy.)

"Vio?" Nathan says, slowly stepping into the room. Vio's bad mood is clear, and Nathan seems wary in knowing that.

"Yes?" Vio grumbles. Yesterday he rejected Shadow, and he's felt like absolute crap ever since. He can't pinpoint why, however...

_You feel bad for doing that, don't you?_

His heart races.

(no I don't. he totally deserved that.)

_He did nothing wrong. He can't help how he feels, and neither can you._

(okay, well... maybe I feel a LITTLE bad.)

"Um... Dad wants to talk to you..."

Vio almost screams. _No, no, no, no, NO! _He's been trying to _avoid_ his father since Monday! And now Dad wants to _talk to him_? Can't he take a hint?

"Why?" he says, noticing that it takes more effort than it should to stay calm, and even so he's practically shaking in rage.

"I... I don't know!" Nathan says incredulously, throwing his hands above his head, in almost a surrender to Vio's attitude.

"Oh, fine!" Vio shrieks, rising from his bed. The more time he spends in this situation– the more time he spends in this house– the more violent he acts. Vio _never_ acts violent.

Why must there always be an exception to every rule?

Vio stomps out of the room in a huff, with Nathan calling out, "He's in the kitchen!"

No need. This house is so small that Vio has already spotted his father sitting at the kitchen table, smiling at Vio. Vio feels absolutely sick.

"Vio, what's wrong?" his father asks as Vio sits across from him.

"Nothing, end of discussion," Vio states, rising from his chair almost as soon as he's settled himself. "Bye!"

"Vio," his father warns, raising his eyebrows. Of _course_ his father sees through his lie. Just. Vio's. Stupid. Luck.

Vio sighs dramatically and sits back down, resting his chin in his palms and staring ahead blankly.

(just don't show any emotion. deny everything and he'll never know.)

"What's wrong?" his father repeats. "You've been acting irritable lately."

Vio frowns, feeling almost hopeless in his bad mood. "It's not important."

"You make it _seem_ like it's important."

Vio tries a different, more truthful, approach. "I don't want to talk about it!"

Vio's dad lets out a feeble sigh. "Alright." Vio stands. "But I still want to talk to you." Vio sits. _Dammit!_

"What?" Vio says, more air leaving his mouth than words.

"I understand you're still with me about the divorce..."

Vio narrows his eyes. _Yes, yes I am. Took you long enough._

"...But I'd like you to know, I was hardly any part of it."

Vio stares at the table. "I know..."

"It was your mother's decision, and I–"

"–couldn't bare to say no to her, I know." Vio is silent for a few moments, his gaze still set on the thick wood. "... Do you really love Mom that much?"

Vio can tell, even without looking, that his father is smiling. He _always_ smiles when talking about Mom.

"You know, Vio... It's pretty easy to tell when you're in love. I don't think it has anything to do with whether you can see only them when they're around, or if you read the messages they send you over and over..." Vio looks up just as his dad crosses a finger over his own heart. "It's the heartbeat. Your heart speeds when you're just having a normal, everyday conversation. Nothing exciting, nothing that would normally make your heart race. Even when you think about them, your heart begins to beat faster." He smiles. "_That's_ how I can tell." **(1)**

Four things happen all at once—

1.) Vio's eyes widen.

2.) The little voice in his head shrivels and dies.

3.) A gust of wind blows in from the open window, making his father's homemade wind chime jingle in the breeze...

& 4.) Vio realizes he's in love with Shadow.

_Took you long enough._

**AN- **

**(1)- Longest paragraph in BMF history.**


	35. Shadow ll Will

Shadow throws a pillow at the doorway, and successfully hits the intruder straight in the face. "What the _hell_ are you doing in my house, Blue?"

Blue sputters a little as the pillow hits his face, and looks at it as it plummets towards the carpet. "You're obviously in a bad mood, so I came to cheer you up."

"Oh..." Shadow manages a small smile, sitting up on his bed. "Thanks."

"No problem," Blue says with a shrug as he walks over to the side of the bed and sits down next to Shadow. He's carrying a small basket, and he sets it down in-between the two of them.

"What's that?" Shadow asks, eying the basket. "And why is it..." he smirks, "so girly?"

"It is _not_ girly!" Blue yelps furiously, grabbing the basket and holding it protectively. "My sister gave it to me." He pauses. "It's special."

"So you have to bring it _everywhere_?" Honestly, if Shadow was special to someone, he wouldn't mind being dragged around everywhere. Because if he was special to someone, that's all that would matter... especially if his was special to Vio.

"I do _not_ bring it everywhere! I only brought it here because there's stuff in it!"

Shadow blinks. "What kinda stuff?"

Blue takes off the cloth that was covering the top of the basket (what _is_ he, Little Blue Riding Hood?), and reveals a stack of X-Cube 180 games.

Shadow suddenly finds the will to smile. "Blue, you are awesome."

Blue smirks. "I had a lot of extra money."

"Wait... do you mean...?"

"They're yours."

Shadow's eyes to something funny that makes his eyes water, but he is _definitely_ not about to cry. No way. "Really?"

Blue nods. "All yours."

Shadow practically tackles Blue as his method of thanking him. "Thank you, thank you, _thank you_!"

"Yeah, yeah, now get off!" Blue commands as he shoves Shadow away from him. Shadow simply smiles at Blue, happier than he could ever be...

...Until he remembers why Blue needed to cheer him up. He bites his lip and stares off to the side worriedly.

Blue recognizes this gesture and lightly touches his shoulder. When Shadow turns to him, he says, "I don't have to be home until four..." It's an innocent suggestion, and it's all it takes to get Shadow to smile again.

"Thanks," he says for the fifth time. He redirects his attention to the bag, awestruck. "But seriously, dude– how did you manage to find _Glory Grab_? I've been looking _everywhere _for it!"

"My sister took me to four different stores."

"And _Killer's_ _Doctrine_? Blue, you're amazing!"

"Well, I do my best."

The two boys sit in silence for a few moments. Out of all people, Shadow would've never expected Blue to be so generous. And Blue's generosity has actually managed to bring a light to his mood, only because he's realized—

"Wanna play _Entree 2_ on co-op mode?"

"Yes!"

—Blue will _never_ let him become a third wheel.


	36. Green ll Stupid

**AN- Sorry for being gone. I was at a wedding. BUT GUESS WHAT. I wrote a chapter during my absence!**

Green breezes through the hallways. He ignores the glares and whispers; the gossip and lies; the secrets and betrayal that lingers in the air.

So much is wrong in his life. Everything is just spiraling down, and all Green can do is wait for it to all end. The problems just keep stacking up, and Green is having trouble keeping the pile balanced. It's only bound to collapse.

But so much, _so much_, has gone wrong.

_His supposed "best friend" is a total jerk._ Green knows things have changed since seventh grade– people change, places change, trends change, opinions change. But it seems Vaati has changed the most. And it's more than longer hair, nicer clothes, and eyeliner. Or maybe Vaati hasn't really changed at all. Maybe he's _always_ been a total jerk, and Green was just too blind to notice.

_His supposed "best friend" is in love with him. _It almost _hurts _Green to know that Vaati was only hard on him because he was heartbroken... _almost._ But what really gets Green is the fact that he brought this on himself. He feels like an idiot.

_Zelda isn't speaking to him._ She glances at him nervously in class, but not a single word is ever spoken. It hurts, but Green can't find the will to tell her.

_Everyone hates him._ The gossip grows louder, and Green ignores several comments, including, "You don't have to whisper, you know. He's not listening."

_Yes I am._

_It's already lunch, and he doesn't have a lunch. _His parents weren't around to make it, and Green couldn't be bothered to make it himself after packing Aryll's. He figured with all the crap he's been through, starving to death wouldn't be so bad.

_His wrists hurt like the burn of Din's great fire._ Paralyzation and self-harm don't mix. Green winces slightly as he learns this the hard way... _again._

Stupid Vaati, stupid love, stupid silence, stupid gossip, stupid lunch, stupid wrists.

...Stupid Green.

**AN- This might be the shortest chapter in Break My Fall history. ...I'M SO SORRY.**


	37. Red ll Too

**AN- I am not going to put this chapter off. I am not going to put this chapter off. I am not going to put off what will be one of the longest chapters in the story (so far). No way.**

_**Bring it on.**_

Red clenches his fists as he warily follows Blue and Shadow into the cafeteria. Shadow– once again– has neglected to bring his lunch to school. He wanted to go alone, but after what happened last time, Red and Blue weren't letting him go without backup.

"I'm _telling_ you guys, I'll be fine!" Shadow insists still, maybe a bit louder than he should have. The whole school is still against them, and Red is worried about drawing to much attention to themselves. _We don't want anymore disasters to happen._

"And I'm telling _you_, we don't want you to embarrass yourself again!" Blue retorts bitterly.

Shadow is silent for a moment as his dark eyes narrow at Blue. And then, "Gee, _thanks_."

Red sighs quietly. _They sure aren't making things any easier on themselves._ He straightens his spine and speaks. Even with his soft, sweet voice, he still manages to startle the two. "Shadow, Blue just wants you to be safe. He cares about you; we both do."

Shadow's voice grows soft as his cheeks turn pink. "I know..."

Blue and Red watch closely as Shadow gets his lunch. A few potential problems are avoided– like Midna attempting to trip Shadow– but Blue stopped those disasters before they even began. Red smiles as he feels lucky to have Blue for a boyfriend. _No one will bother me at this rate._

Shadow walks back towards them, nervously glancing at the food on his plate. Red can understand. The cafeteria food isn't very pleasant, but at least they got rid of the mashed potatoes after what happened to Saria... _Poor girl. She had to wear an eyepatch for two weeks. _**(1)**

"Okay...," Shadow says. "I think I'm ready to go."

"Great," Blue agrees, rising from his seat at an empty cafeteria table. Red follows in suit, and they head towards the door before suddenly. Stopping. Short.

_Oh no..._

"Hello, boys." An all-too-familiar figure leans against the doorway, which the crowd has parted away from like the Red Sea.

Speaking of Red, he's frozen in place, and for once, his mind is blank.

"What do you _want_, Vaati?" Shadow growls, gripping his food tray.

"It's not _you_ I have business with, Shade–"

"It's _Shadow_."

Vaati rolls his eyes. It's easy to tell that he could really care less about Shadow's name. "I have to speak with the blue one."

Red's brain is in full function again, and now it's working overtime. _Vaati wants to talk to Blue? Why? Did Blue do something wrong? Is Vaati going to get more revenge on Blue? Why Blue? What did he ever do? Take me instead!_

"Fine," Blue announces, taking a few steps forward.

"Here is fine," Vaati demands, and Blue stands still.

"What is it?" Blue grumbles, crossing his arms over his chest.

Vaati smirks. It's a terrible, devious smirk, and it makes Red tremble. _No... Please don't hurt him..._ But Vaati's smirk only grows as he takes a few cautious steps towards Blue.

"I was just thinking, Blue, about the _old times_..." Blue grows stiff. _Old times? What old times?_

"Especially..." Vaati snarls. "_Third grade._"

"You know, Blue," Vaati continues in sadistic bliss, "part of me wishes we could have stayed friends longer."

A silenced hush falls over the room. _Vaati and Blue... friends? _Red looks ahead at Blue, and sees him flinch, fists clenched tightly.

"I can't _blame_ you for falling in love with me– who wouldn't?"

_What?_

_I mean..._

_What?_

Whispers fill the room. Vaati speaks once more. "After all, you _did_ kiss me..."

_No._

_No._

_No way._

_He's lying._

_He has to be._

_Blue didn't._

_He would never– not even back then._

_No._

Blue flinches again, and this time a small sound escapes him– not at all fitting the Blue Red's always known. This sound is vulnerable, this sound shows weakness, this sound is a sign that everything's _not_ alright. The sound escapes Blue a few more times. _Is Blue... is he...?_

_No._

_Blue is stronger than that._

_I know he is._

_He's not crying._

_He's not._

_I just know it._

"How pathetic," Vaati coos. "To think you _ever_ had a chance with me. Pitiful."

Blue's stands stiffer, his breathing rigid.

"You know, you shouldn't just kiss people out of the blue like that!" Vaati cries, venom caught up in undertones in his shrill shrieks. "You lose people's respect like that! It's rude, it's immature, it's thoughtless, it's impulsive, it's—"

"It's not like you're any better!" another voice shouts, overtaking the room. Everyone turns to Green, who's stood up and is now glaring daggers at Vaati. Vaati freezes in place, his eyes growing wider than Red thought was possible.

_I knew it. Something __**did**__ happen between the two of them..._

Vaati barely moves his mouth as he speaks, still frozen in place. "I don't know what you're talking about," he says in almost a monotone, with the only hint of emotion being the slightest twinge of anxiety.

Green's glare narrows. "I think you do." His voice raises to an uncontrollable volumeas he shouts out, "How can you be such a hypocrite? You talk about respect, and immaturity, when you don't even have any yourself! May I remind you that you kissed _me _without warning less than a _week_ ago?"

The whole cafeteria isdead silent. _No way..._

"I-I-I–" Vaati begins to protest, but he's quickly interrupted by Green once more.

"No! I am _done_, Vaati! You hear me? I have had _enough_ of your attitude! Just _get out of my life_!"

Vaati trembles as Green rushes out of the cafeteria in a huff. No, wait– it's not just a huff. It's more along the line of furious _rage_ as Green exits the cafeteria, and no one says a single word as he leaves.

The next to leave is Blue, who chases after Green, most likely in hope of thanking him. And as Red watches him leave, he realizes that Blue _was_ crying, because a few stray tears are still hanging at his jaw line.

And as he follows Shadow out of the cafeteria, he takes one look back at Vaati, and that one look is all that it takes to confirm his suspicions—

Vaati is crying, too.

**AN- Oh my god that was so much fun to write. I **_**love**_** torturing Vaati. Like, so much. You don't even know. I **_**adore**_** him in this story, but it's so much fun to get under his skin and gnaw away at his flesh like this. So. Much. Fun.**

**(1)- If you get the reference, I'll love you forever. So... yeah! Feel free to guess what it is! I don't care if you're wrong, it's the thought that counts!**


	38. Blue ll Maybe

**AN- OMG I am so PUMPED. **_**Yessss new Teen Titans!**_** So in my fit of excitement, let's down this chapter real fast.**

**By the way... I had a goal for last chapter, but I don't think it was reached. So let's TRY THIS AGAIN.**

Blue pants as he dashes down the hall. One leg in front of the other. Right, left, right, left, faster, faster, how much he's picking up the pace, he has to skid to a halt when he comes across Green, who's standing completely still, with his back facing Blue. His shoulders are hunched over, and his posture is stiff. After what he just saw in the cafeteria, it's surprising to see Green in such a weak position. He slowly reaches out for him.

"Blue!" Blue turns his head to see Red racing towards the two, with Shadow close behind. When he sees Green, he stops so suddenly that Shadow runs into him. He shrieks.

"Sorry," Shadow mumbles quickly.

"It's okay," is what Blue thinks he heard Red say. But it's really hard to tell when all of his focus is on Green, who hasn't said a word since he left the cafeteria.

"Green?" he says warily, reaching out for him again. Green flinches as Blue's hand lands on his shoulder, and he shifts so that Blue's hand falls limp to its owner's side. "I... I just wanted to say... thanks."

"It was no problem," Green says firmly, but there's something else hidden in the firmness. Something compressed, something that Blue can't quite make out. But he knows one thing– it can't be good. "You needed my help, and Vaati was being a jerk– as usual– so..." He trails off, and Blue sees him stiffen even more.

"Green..." Red says softly, "if you want... we can be your friends. Really. You seem really nice, and I wanna help."

"Yeah!" Shadow chimes in, a bit loudly. "You see, we have this plan. If Vaati ruins–"

"I'll pass," Green mutters. Without another word, he walks briskly ahead.

The three of them– Big Mouth, Invisibility, and Mr. Mistake– stare at him as he leaves. And as soon as he's out of ear-shot—

"We're gonna go after him, right?"

"Yeah... but not now. Later."

The bell rings.

"Well," Shadow says, straightening his messenger bag."I have chorus fifth period and science sixth." He bites his lip, shuffling his feet as he stares at the ground. "...Wish me luck."

"I'll go with you," Red says. "The band room is near the science wing. What's so bad about chorus?" **(1)**

Their voices trail off as they walk away from Blue. And even as they're gone, he feels eyes on him. And wait... he smells something.

_Lavender._

He turns around and sees an embarrassed head duck down, almost in shame. "That's funny," Blue says as he approaches the bench. "I thought you had _no_ shame."

"Haha, very funny Blueberry," Vaati murmurs, staring at his black and red converse. He's silent for a moment. Blue knows why. Vaati hasn't called him "Blueberry" in years. "...How'd you find me?" he asks softly.

Blue sits down on the bench, while Vaati stays on the ground. "You've been wearing the same cologne since sixth grade."

Vaati hugs his knees to his chest, and Blue can almost see the insecurity oozing out of his pores. "I thought you had stopped paying attention to me by then."

Blue almost smiles, shaking his head. "Never."

Vaati stands and brushes himself off. He picks up his backpack and slings it over one shoulder. And before he leaves, he turns to Blue and smiles. This time it isn't one of his fake smirks. It's a real, genuine smile, and somehow this small smile is enough to convince Blue, that somewhere, somehow, the true Vaati is still locked tightly within.

...Maybe it's just his job to get him out.

**AN-**

**(1)- Guess why chorus is bad. Just guess. I dare you to. If you're reading this, you better guess, dammit.**


	39. Vio ll Bell

**AN- It's almost two in the morning... OTL but I told myself I would write chapter 39 today so HERE I AM!****I was really busy today, so that's why I'm writing** **this so late. I was in Japan Town getting manga.**

Vio taps fingers against his desk impatiently. Home Economics isn't too far from the science wing, and even so Vio rushed over here as quickly as possible. After all, the band room _is_ right next to the science wing, and Shadow _does_ have chorus fifth period...

But no. Shadow _mysteriously _isn't here. Vio taps faster, feeling his heart pick up pace. He was the first one to arrive to the classroom, but at this point a few more students have drizzled into the room. Shadow must still be avoiding him, and will most likely show up at the last possible moment, giving Vio absolutely no time to say even a single word to him. Then at the end of class, he'll dash out of the room before Vio can stop him.

_Well, no more._ Vio stands out of his seat and heads towards the door. If Shadow won't talk to him before class, Vio will have to find him before class himself. But as he walks towards the doorway, his foot hits something.

He looks down. It's an envelope. Someone must have dropped it. Maybe they left their name on it, and Vio can give it back to them after class. He picks it up and turns it over. And there, in flowing half-print-half-cursive written in indigo ink, is the name _Vio_.

It's Shadow's handwriting. Vio is sure of it. It's the same handwriting that's on all of his science homework, on the "down with Vaati" lists, and on the back of Vio's chair. (Shadow thinks he doesn't know.) It's obviously to Vio, hence his name being there, so who would ever mind if he took a little peek at it?

From the other side of the room, a girl with blonde hair, blue eyes; fully decked in green; smirks.

Vio calmly walks back to his seat, staring at the note in wonder. He sits down and swiftly opens the note. He unfolds the piece of paper inside, only to find rows and rows of purple-blue cursive. It's beautiful, and Vio takes a moment admiring it before actually beginning to read.

_Vio—_

_I know you won't be reading this_ _(considering I'm __not__ giving it to you), but I might as well write it down anyways._

_I have a gut feeling you know, but I've fallen in love with you. Don't ask me why, don't ask me how, because the details are still fuzzy to me. All I know is that I can't get enough of this feeling._

_However, as you know, something's in the way. A lot of things, actually. I don't even know exactly what it is, but... but you don't want to be around me. I can understand. You must think I'm out to get you even though I barely know you, or whatever. I don't care. Really. I don't mind at all._

_I just want you know that I'm scared. I'm falling, and I'm going to hit solid ground soon. I just don't know when. No matter what I do, I can't brace myself for the pain that's about to hit. So I hope that you'll find it in your heart to– oh, I know how hopeless it sounds– try and break my fall_.

— _Shadow_

Vio blinks as he begins to re-read the note. If Shadow wasn't planning on giving it to him, then how did Vio get it? Maybe it fell out of his backpack. No, Shadow hasn't been in here since yesterday. If he had dropped it then, someone would have found it by now. So why it's in Vio's hands at the moment is a complete mystery.

Vio hears footsteps enter the room, muffled by the chattering of his classmates, and he silently slips the note into his backpack. He directs his attention towards the can tell Shadow is trying very hard not to look at him, and Vio smirks slightly at how surprisingly _cute_ he looks in doing so.

Shadow warily takes his seat next to Vio, and–

"Hello, Shadow."

The bell rings.


	40. Shadow ll After

**AN- Are you guys ready for this? ...Well, you shouldn't be. And you won't be. TRUST me. :3**

"_Hello, Shadow."_ The words are stuck on replay in Shadow's head. Vio... is actually _talking_ to him. Just yesterday Vio was avoiding him. Just yesterday they were avoiding _each other_. Shadow had been completely convinced that science was going to be _horrible_. What happened? He's so nervous to find out that feels like his heart is going to pound out of his chest. He's... In fact, he's _too_ nervous to find out. Vio probably just wants to reject him a second time.

But another part of Shadow really wants to believe that Vio likes him back, that Vio might actually be willing to return his feelings. He really, really wants to believe that it's true... but he knows if he _does_ believe it, it'll only end in disappointment. Then again, Shadow still wants Vio to love him back... He just knows Vio never will. So either way, he'll just end up disappointed as usual.

The only way to avoid it is to avoid Vio in general. And that's exactly what he'll do.

As if on cue, Vio says, "Shadow, I need to talk to you..."

Just as he's about to speak again, Shadow quickly interrupts. "Not now Vio, class has started. Wouldn't wanna ruin that perfect behavior role, now would we?" _Stupid, stupid, stupid! That sounded so __**stupid**__!_

"Um... Yeah...," Vio says slowly, and he turns to face the front of the room.

The rest of class goes by smoothly. Vio doesn't say a word, but Shadow can tell he's holding it in by the way Vio keeps glancing at him. Shadow glances at him, too, and almost every time their eyes will meet, and they both quickly look away. Shadow can feel his face burn in embarrassment.

It's when class ends that things get interesting. As soon as the final bell rings, Shadow jumps out of his seat and heads towards the door, eager to _get the hell out of there_. But before he can get there, Vio reaches forward and catches his wrist. Shadow stops and slowly looks back, mortified.

"Shadow, I _said_ we need to talk," Vio says, eyes narrowed.

"I-I-I...," Shadow stammers, racking his brain for some sort of escape plan. Desperate, he cries, "I-I don't need to be rejected _twice_!"

"Huh?" Vio murmurs, his eyes widening. "Shadow, I was just–"

He doesn't get to finish his sentence. In his shock, Vio had loosened his grip on Shadow's wrist, and Shadow had taken the opportunity and twisted free in an instant. Shadow pushes past students who shriek at him as he dashes out of the classroom.

_What to do, what to do, what to do?_

That's right! He has to meet Red and Blue at the band room! Their plan is to stop Green as he gets out of the classroom, and convince him to help them take down Vaati. It shouldn't be long, the band room is right outside of the science wing–

"Shadow, get back here!" Shadow glances over his shoulder.

_Oh, crap._

Vio just _has_ to chase after him.

**AN- No confession for you. :P Feel free to hate me now. So...? Can you guys guess who's seme here? If you're reading this, you better guess! (She's not pulling this trick again, is she?) Why, yes, yes I am!Please guess! It's an excuse to review!**

**Now there's only ten chapters left! *excitement* Wish me luck, everyone!**


	41. Green ll Back

**AN- Miss me? Well, I've been dealing with my cousins for a while, so I've had no time to update. That, and I've got too much Invader Zim to focus on. XD Anywho, I hopefully have about an hour here, so let's do this!**

Green places his ocarina in its case. One day, who knows how many more to go. He's finally figured it out– even though Vaati's a jerk, without him... Green really _is_ nothing. Vaati has all the power, and Green... he can't change that. He can only hope that Vaati will step down from his rein of tyranny... But Green _seriously_ doubts that.

He runs a hand through his hair as he closes the case. It's really just an excuse to glance at his wrist, just to make sure his wristband hasn't slipped. It looks fine.

He hoists his backpack over his shoulder, picks up his case, and starts towards the door. As soon as he gets out of the room, he stops.

What is that sound? He was the last to leave the classroom– by _far_– so it can't be footsteps... right?

Wrong. Green turns his head just in time to catch sight of Blue rushing towards him, a stern look on his face. Red follows him, panting lightly as he tries to keep up. Shadow is far behind, but he's catching up fast as he dashes away from Vio. Vio may be a bit behind, but he's already gaining as they approach the middle...

_Wait a minute_. Green is the middle. Crap. He feels utterly helpless. It's like a terrible dream; a nightmare that you know you're in, but you can't find the power to wake up because you're just too tired. All the energy has been drained from Green's body, and all he can do is just stand and wait for it to all crash and burn.

And that's exactly what he does.

It happens all at once. Vio and Shadow reach Green just as Blue and Red do. Vio is the first to take action in the group, grabbing the back of Shadow's shirt as he glares intensely at him. "Shadow! Will you just listen to me?"

Shadow tries to pull free, squirming out of Vio's grasp. "No! I don't need to be rejected _twice_!"

If Green wasn't frozen in fear, he would shake his head in exasperation. Some people are _so_ clueless...

"That's not it!" says Vio, reaching out for him. "What I'm trying to say is–"

Green almost forgot about Blue and Red in all the commotion. But before he can think, before he can wake up from this horrible nightmare, Blue is reaching for his wrist.

_Wake up, wake up, wake up._

And then it's too late.

Green feels the pain course through his body, and immediately he winces under Blue's rough touch. Blue seems to take it as an expression of shock, and simply tightens his grip on Green's wrist.

_Ping._ It's a blast of pain that's so sharp, so rigid, that it gives Green the power to wake up.

He yanks his wrist out of Blue's grasp, so forcefully that the wind blows over his wrist–

. . .

He looks down. His wristband, once on his hand, lays there. Green stares at it until he feels his own eyes are bound to burn identical holes in the blue-and-orange fabric.

He looks up. Blue, Red, Shadow, and Vio all stare in shock. Blue is at a stand still. Red's eyes are wider than Green thought was possible. Shadow's usually tan face is growing pale. Vio's jaw is dropped.

Green looks to the side. He would be wearing bandages on his wrist, but they fell off after fourth period. He had been planning to put more on after school... But he doesn't think that'll happen now.

Red is the first to speak, his eyes finally leaving Green's wrist. His voice is high and shaky, like a violin. "Green... You–"

Green doesn't hear him finish. He's already gone, running off to a place where no one can find him...

He wants to go back to bed.


	42. Red ll Hero

**AN- I don't have an excuse this time.** **Except Invader Zim is RULING MY LIFE. Sorry. At least I only have nine chapters left... You know what? I promise two chapters today! Two filler chapters! :D (What a cheap-out.)**

As Green rushes off, Blue is the first to take action. "Red!" he says louder than he should. "Go to the nurse's office and get the first aid kit! Now!" There is no gentleness in his voice, and it frightens Red. He nods and obeys, rushing away from the scene as fast as he can. _Which is surprisingly fast. I had no idea I was so speedy._

He faintly hears Blue shouting, "Vio, Shadow– go find Zelda! She has sixth period English!"

Next is Shadow, who objects with, "He is _not_ a part of this!"

Vio responds with, "I am now!" Red glances over his shoulder just in time to see Vio taking Shadow's wrist and dragging him down the halls. _Thank goodness. They need some closure._

Red forces himself to move faster, feeling his legs burn as he gasps for breath. This is faster than he's ever ran before, but he has to move quickly, because _I need to help Green. I didn't know what he was going through was this bad. _His mind switches to last week, when Green showed up in the nurse's office with a paralyzed wrist. _I could've helped him earlier... but I didn't. _

_I'm always invisible... But maybe that's not a bad thing._ _Sure nobody pays attention to me, and I'm always ignored... But really, that's not true. People do know I exist, and now I have friends who care about me._

He finally reaches the nurse's office. He throws off his backpack, unzips the front pocket, and fumbles for the key. He's so scared, his hands are shaking. He finally manages to unlock the door and he rushes inside.

_Really, being invisible can be an advantage. I'm like a ninja... or a spy!_ _Yeah! I could get information about Vaati from behind the scenes!_ He grabs the first aid kit from off of the counter and dashes out, remembering to lock the door behind him.

_Or... invisibility is a super power, right?_

He forces himself to move faster. His throat hurts from so much panting, and his legs ache more than he could have ever imagined. But he has to get to Green.

_Alright, Red. Now's your time to prove it. You can be the hero you really want to be._


	43. Blue ll Anything

**AN- Chapter number two for the day! Let's do this! LEEEEROOOOY... MMJEEEENNNKINNNS!** ***SHOT***

"He is not a part of this!" Shadow objects, pointing to Vio accusingly.

Blue is about to muster a glare that could burn a hole through Shadow's head when Vio says, "I am now!" he grabs Shadow's wrist and forces him away from the scene.

Blue has no time to waste. He runs down the hallway in the way Green left, praying no teachers will catch him. Oh well, another detention wouldn't be so bad, as long as he got a hold of Green.

Blue isn't the fastest, but it appears Green is slower, because after about thirty seconds, he can already see him down the other end of the hall. But he can feel his stamina dropping, and he knows he'll have to do something to save himself and Green.

So he takes a risk. Because isn't that what Blue's all about?

"_Green!_" he shouts out. Green glances over his shoulder his eyes widening as he spots Blue. He looks ahead again and tries to run faster. Then he looks over his shoulder again, his expression softens, his shoulders slump, and he just... _stops_.

Risk taken.

Blue slows down his pace as he nears Green, finally stopping when he reaches him. He gingerly takes Green's hand, lifting it up so he can inspect his wrist. "What the hell, Green?" he whispers angrily– it's the loudest he can raise his voice to without letting his real emotions spill out.

Green yanks his hand away from Blue, and instantly winces, bringing his hand back to his chest. "I-I-I..."

"Why'd you do it?" Green looks up, his eyes filled to the brim with fear and uncertainty.

"I... I don't know." He looks down again, his eyes filling with tears.

"Bullsh*t."

Green looks back up, his eyes wide. "What?"

"That's _bullsh*t,_ Green!" Blue all but shouts out. "Why did you do this to yourself?"

Green's eyes begin to overflow, and he falls to his knees, sobbing. Blue bends down, wrapping his arms around him. "Hey... I'm not mad."

Green glances at him, his facial expression saying, _"Really."_

Blue fidgets, tightening his grip on Green slightly. "Okay... I am. But I'm worried about you. Really. I've been in some bad situations with Vaati, too. And I know he's not easy to deal with." He tries to hold back the words, but they just flow out. "At least, not after what I did to him."

Green backs up, staring at his in wonder.

"I-I... I guess in a way, it's my fault that Vaati is like this. I don't really know how, but... but he was nicer before I went and kissed him." He sighs slightly. Here goes his pride. "So... so I'm sorry for doing this. I didn't know it would affect everyone like it did."

Green smiles a little, but it's there and then it's gone. "I... I forgive you," he says at last. "You couldn't have known. But I... I just can't handle it. Everyone just expects me to just take it and not let this all bother me... but it does."

Blue raise an eyebrow. "And what is 'all this'?"

Green frowns. "Everything. Vaati, the bullying, the kiss, Zelda..." The last three words are hardly mumbled. "...My sister... the divorce..." He chokes back a sob, sinking into Blue's shoulder.

"You don't have to say anything else."


	44. Vio ll Sure

**AN- Okay, Firefly. C'mon. You know if you just get a start on this chapter it'll all flow out. So just stop writing Invader Zim stories and DO EET. Kay? Good.**

**On another note, look! I have mades a cover! ...That you guys don't have a good view of. ;A; Don't worry,** **I'll put it on deviantART...**

**Riiiiiight after I write this chapter.**

**(or not.)**

**Shut up, Vio's conscience! You're supposed to be dead!**

"I don't understand why you can't just listen to me!" Vio says through gritted teeth as he drags Shadow down the hallway.

"Shadow struggles to break free from Vio's grasp, muttering, "And _I_ don't understand why you feel the need to reject me twice!" He finally wriggles out of Vio's grip, briskly taking a few steps ahead of him.

Vio resists bringing his palm to his forehead in absolute exasperation and frustration. How _blind_ can he possibly be? As blind as a bat, that's for sure. "_That's_ what this is all about?" He crosses his arms over his chest as he reaches Shadow's side. "Shadow, how do you know I'm going to reject you again when I haven't even _said_ anything?"

Shadow slows to halt, his eyes unreadable. He just stays silent for a few moments, and he's bound to continue. So Vio stop as well, drops his backpack to the ground, stoops down, unzips the front pocket, and takes out the note. He shoves it in Shadow's face, cursing himself for being so forward. "Shadow... What is _this_?"

Shadow's whole face is instantly the color of a very ripe raspberry. "I-I-I... How did you _get_ that?"

Vio brings the whole back, looking at it unsurely. How exactly had the note come about? He doesn't know. "I honestly have no idea... But you wrote it, there's no doubt about that." He unfolds it, revealing the indigo cursive. His eyes scan the loops and curves. He holds it out towards Shadow. "It _is_ yours... isn't it?"

"...No," Shadow says softly, staring at the ground. "I-It's yours... but yes, I wrote it." He finally looks up, but he still avoid Vio's gaze. "Vio... _please_ don't hate me... I mean, don't hate me more than you already do."

"I don't hate you."

Shadow finally looks at him, his eyes shining, his face red. "You... You don't?"

Vio shakes his head. "I did before, but..." He searches his mind for something that doesn't sound cliche. When he fails, he sighs, takes Shadow's hand, squeezes it tightly, leans forward, and calmly presses his lips against Shadow's.

Shadow's reaction, however, is anything _but_ calm. As soon as it's started, it's over, because Shadow has jumped back, his face redder than ever before. He clamps his hands over his mouth, his dark blue eyes wide in shock.

_Talk_ about deja vu.

"I-I-I-I-I...," the last part is hardly whispered, "_What?_"

Vio is silent for a moment, debating on what to say. Finally, he settles with, "Shadow... I love you, too. I know I haven't been... the _kindest_ to you in the past week, but... I've never been in any form of relationship before... This is all new to me, in some ways."

"Really?" Shadow practically squeaks, his eyes growing even wider. "Because for one so new, you're pretty damn _calm_!"

Vio simply shrugs. "I'm known for being calm." He looks directly at Shadow, who looks so mortified that Vio can hardly help the smirk that finds its way onto his face. "Besides, isn't this what you wanted?"

"W-Well, I mean, yes, but...," Shadow trails off, and after a moment, stomps a foot down. "Dammit! I didn't know I was this shy!"

Vio holds back a chuckle and smiles to himself. "Well, you are." He takes a step closer, weaving his fingers around Shadow's again. "But if it's any constellation... I think it's really cute."

Shadow's face turns even redder, if possible. Or maybe it's just Vio's imagination. Either way.

It seems that they both just know what to do. Shadow, who can't speak a single sentence without making a fool of himself, and Vio, who has just now realized that his entire week has revolved around Shadow. They just leaned forward and let their lips meet. It wasn't lip-crushing like the kiss that had ruined their reputations, and it wasn't a light peck like the one that had made Shadow jump away in a frenzy. It was soft and gentle, and this time neither of them pulled away.

"A-_hem_."

Shadow, naturally, is the one to pull away, and this time Vio isn't mistaken; Shadow's face _is_ more red. In fact, it seems like he's trying to hide his own face from... from...

Vio realizes he hasn't even turned to see who it is. He looks over, and this time he can't resist the urge to let his palm collide with his forehead. He groans. "We forgot to get Zelda..."

She nods, trying to look calm. Vio can see that she's sweating. "Red passed by my English class to see if you had. He explained the situation to me... and I'm sure he would find this position...," she coughs, "_compromising_."

Vio frowns, feeling guilty for forgetting the task at hand. "Yes, well, I'm sorry." He looks between Shadow and Zelda, before looking down the hallway. "I think it's about time we get going, then?"

Zelda smiles, but it's very tiny, and Vio doesn't believe it's a real smile. "Yes... Yes, we should." She takes a few steps ahead, motioning for Vio and Shadow to follow. "Let's go then." Zelda's steps are quick and rushed, and if Vio weren't so worried, he would smirk. Zelda really _does_ care about Green.

Vio then takes note of Shadow, who's staring at the ground as he walks, his face _still_ bright red. Vio can't hold back his smile, and he shakes his head slightly. Then he reaches out to take Shadow's hand, giving it a light squeeze. Shadow looks up at him, his gaze questioning. Vio just smiles. _Calm down. It's not such a big deal._ And while Shadow doesn't seem to translate the look, he smiles back. And that's a start.

It doesn't take them long to find Blue and Green. By then, Red has caught up to them, and he's wrapping a gauze around Green's wrist.

"Oh, woah," Shadow says as they approach. "Red, your face. It's so... well, red! Are you okay?"

Red smiles. "I feel great, actually!" He glances over at Green, who's face is downcast. "I think you should be asking Green if he's okay, though..."

"Oh," says Shadow. "Right." He looks over to Green, nervously. "Sorry!"

Green tries to smile, but it looks forced. "It's fine..."

Shadow frowns and falls silent. Vio decides to break the silence, saying, "We brought Zelda..."

"You did?" Green says softly, his gaze drifting to where she stands. "You... you did." He looks down again. "Thanks."

Zelda stoops down, placing her hands on Green's shoulders. "Green... I'm sorry for being so selfish. I didn't know you would end up like this... I shouldn't have listened to Vaati. Student council's not that important anyways..." Vio tries to put two and two together. _Vaati must have threatened to ruin Zelda's life if she defended Green. That __**would**__ mean the end of her student council career..._

"It's not _your_ fault," Green mumbles. "Vaati's the one who did all of this." He finally looks up at her. "You're innocent."

"Green...," she looks like she's at war with herself, "is this why you...?" She looks down at his bandaged wrist, frowning.

Green is dead silent for a moment. "...No. Well, yes... sort of. It's only part of it, really. A lot has been going on... Vaati... he..."

Zelda's grip on Green's shoulders seem to tighten. "He kissed you, didn't he?"

"Yes... How did you know?"

Zelda seems taken aback by this question, and for the first time, she looks away from Green. "Just... A lucky guess." **(1)** It's obviously a lie, but Vio doesn't point it out.

Green frowns again. "Yeah... Well, I... I'm not..."

Zelda nods. "I know."

Green glances between the four boys, holding his arms up in defense. "Nothing against you guys, though. I totally respect that! I'm just not..." He changes the subject. "And on top of that... Well... I..." He blinks back tears, or at least Vio _thinks_ he does. "I've been having family troubles..."

No. No way. There was just no way... right?

Red and Vio share a look. He must be thinking the same thing, because he reaches out and lightly touches Green's arm, asking, "Green... What kind of family troubles?" He flinches a bit, looking ashamed of his forwardness. "I mean... If you don't mind me asking..."

"It's okay," Green says. "I really need to let it all out anyways." He sighs. "My sister has been getting bullied..."

Zelda's eyes grow wide. "Aryll has been getting bullied?" She shakes Green slightly. "Oh Green, you should've _told_ me! I'm sure Tetra would _love_ to play with her sometime! You know how she is with bullies. Plus she needs more girl friends... all of her friends are boys." **(2)**

Green smiles slightly. "Thanks... I think she'd really like that." He frowns again, lookign off to the side. "That... and my parents have been fighting..." He eyes begin to pool over with tears. "I-I heard they're filing a divorce..."

For a moment, it seems time just stands still. Everything just clicks. Vio knows it, Red knows it, and suddenly, everyone else knows it. Vio slowly steps forward, letting go of Shadow's hand. He stoops down next to Green, Zelda slowly moving away. Green's eyes are wide, and as Vio stares into them, understanding naturally flows between the two of them.

"I... I know what it's like," Vio says softly. "My parents have been divorced since I was seven, and my younger siblings were barely four. They could hardly understand it, but it hit me hard. I've been... antisocial for a long time. But...," he smiles, "it gets better. This is proof of that fact, isn't it?"

"Yeah," Green mumbles, sounding breathless. "It is." He finally smiles, and this time Vio can _tell_ it's not faked. And with the way it shines through the gloom, it truly looks like the happiest smile Vio's ever seen. Or maybe it's just him.

"It really is."

...But he's pretty sure it's not just him.

**AN- Yessss! I _knew_ this would be the longest chapter of BMF and I was RIGHT! Yeaaaaah! I'm awesome!**

**So. Vio and Shadow... *cough* Can I explain? Okay...**

**The whole "seme-uke" situation is mainly due to my own lack of writing ability. Do you want to see me TRY to write Vio as the uke? I FAIL as writing Uke!Vio. I just... can't. He always ends up so... out of character.**

**Secondly, who's seme is dependent on who breaks out of their harmful mental state first. Vio's being... well, you know, and Shadow's being his whole, "Oh goddesses I made a total fool of myself in front of Vio and now he hates me and bitch bitch bitch." XD Well, not really, but you get what I mean. The thing is, Shadow can't break out of that mental state until Vio accepts him. And Vio can't accept Shadow until realizing he DOES love Shadow, which means breaking out of _his_ mental state. Does that make sense?**

**And lastly... well, you guys should have known! I mean, Shadow pretty much acts like a girl who tries to talk to her crush, but always screws up in the most ridiculous ways. And plus I make him so shy! Here are just a few examples of the inevitable-ness:**

_Standing behind him is a boy with purple hair and tan skin. He's wearing a black turtleneck and dark, ripped jeans. He cowers a bit as Vio turns around, burying his chin and mouth in his turtleneck, but never breaks eye contact._- Chapter 4

_The way Shadow's acting is, in ways, cute._ - Chapter 9

'_Oh no what have I done now Vio hates me too why can't you think for once you stupid idiot!_' -Chapter 15

_"Why! Are! You! So! Stupid!" Shadow cries, smashing his face against a pillow. "You! Ruined! Your! Chance!"_ - Chapter 25

**And one last thing– Think about this. Shadow has been in relationships before. (He's the only main character who has.) But they've all been with girls. Therefore, he's used to being dominant. Vio has NEVER been in a relationship before, even with a girl. Shadow's never been the submissive one in a relationship, Vio's never been the dominant one. It's new for both of them, and it's one of the reasons their relationship will last– it's exciting.**

**And there's my long-ass explanation. (Not only was this the longest chapter, but it had the longest author's note.)**


	45. Shadow ll Air

**AN- Important question, guys... Should I listen to Vocaloid or classic Disney songs while writing? ...Okay, that's not really all that important. XD But tell me anyways.**

Shadow smiles to himself as Vio takes his hand. All is right in the world again. ...Oh. Right. Vaati. Heh. Well, all is right with Vio and Shadow, and that makes Shadow happier than he could've ever imagined. He's still shaky from the stress, though. Besides, he's still not sure Green is alright.

Green. Shadow feels bad for not paying more attention to him. Why didn't he think of befriending Green earlier? After all, he's the perfect secret weapon against Vaati! And he seems awfully nice... Shadow feels his palms grow sweaty as he recalls the moment he discovered Green's little... secret. Maybe if he had befriended him, this wouldn't have happened. But he can't be so pessimistic. It seemed looking on the dark side was getting him nowhere...

And Vio. Vio's parents are divorced. That explains a _lot_. Vio was afraid that things would end badly if he started a relationship with Shadow... But it looks like things are going to work out fine.

"Well, well, well," Shadow hears from behind him. He turns. Dammit, he should've seen this coming. Blue grins, staring at the spot where Vio and Shadow's hands intertwine. "What do we have here?"

Shadow feels his face grow pink, and he musters a feeble glare at Blue. "_Blue_..."

"I'm just saying." Ugh! Why does Blue have to throw Shadow's words right back at him!

Shadow frowns. "Whatever..."

Blue seems almost a little worried until Vio smiles and shrugs. Then he reverts back to normal, turning to Red and ushering him down the hall.

Shadow is about to follow them when a voice catches his ear. He stops to listen.

"What's wrong, Green?"

Vio looks back at him, one eyebrow raised. "Shadow?"

Shadow looks back to him, still focused on the voices. "Oh. You go ahead. I have to get something."

Vio's expression grows more suspicious, but he says, "Okay...," and walks away, releasing Shadow's hand.

Shadow zips to the end of the hall and pokes his head around the corner. He hates to admit it, but eavesdropping is one of his favorite things to do. Just as he suspected, Zelda and Green are standing behind the classrooms. Zelda is looking at Green curiously, just as Vio has been looking at Shadow earlier. Green, on the other hand, is focused on the ground, his whole face a bright red. Shadow can already see where this is going.

Well, he _did_ say he needed to pay more attention to Green... Might as well get a head start.

"Green?" Zelda repeats, leaning forward a tad.

Green finally looks up from the ground, looking like he's about to burst any second. "Zelda... I like you."

Zelda smiles, her face turning just the slightest bit pink. "I like you too, Green."

Shadow grips the edge of the wall in anticipation.

"No...," Green starts. "I mean... I _like_ you... like... _love_ you... I have for a long time." Green's face looks like a cherry, and Shadow can't hold back a smile at the sight of it all.

"Oh!" Zelda says, her face turning a more subtle shade of red. "Well... I... I-I feel the same way..."

Shadow's smile grows wider, and he almost giggles at the way Green has to stand on the tips of his toes to kiss Zelda. He's surprisingly a good three inches shorter than her.

But he should really get going. Watching people kiss is perverted... At least, that's what Shadow has been telling himself all of these years. He still does it anyways. But Vio might be worried about him... No doubt, Red is.

He's just about to turn the corner when he catches a glimpse of purple from the corner of his eye.

_Vio?_

By the time he turns to look, it's gone. He stares at the spot for a moment, expecting something to happen, and when it doesn't, he slowly turns and walks away.

He hardly notices the smell of lavender lingering in the air.

**AN- Holy crap I have five chapters to go. Thank you all so much for reading my story! It's been crazy, I swear. And it's only gonna get crazier once it's all over.**

**How so? Well... I guess it's about time I mention something... Some REALLY big news...**

**I. Have. A. Freaking. SEQUEL. Planned. **

**Damn straight! Remember when I said, "Fat chance, guys,"? Well, that was a troll moment. GOTCHA.**

**So, what do I have planned for this sequel? I can't reveal much, but I'll say this–**

_It's late October, and things have been working out well for our group of heroes. Well, for now, at least. Things can only lead to trouble when Vaati begins following Green around like a lovesick puppy... But that's the least of their problems. Relationship troubles bubble and overflow, and elsewhere, a certain red-head causes trouble for Zelda. And will anybody remember that Vaati's birthday is on the 29__th__, the same day as the Halloween dance? And when things fall apart, who will be the one to hold the glue?_

**So this means that not only the Links are getting chapters, but Vaati and Zelda as well! That adds up to a grand spanking total of 70 chapters. This is gonna be HUGE.**

**Oh, what's that? A title, you ask? **_**Catching Boulders**_**, my friends.**

**By the way, would the one reader who was informed of the fact there was a sequel please stand up? You know who you are. Why didn't the rest of you get to know? Because you guys didn't send in story ideas. :P**

**So... who's gonna get the 200****th**** review?**


	46. Green ll Wild

**AN- Oh my GOSH guys I am so sorry to keep you all waiting like this! I just... You know, same excuse as always. Invader Zim is ruling my life. :P That, and I MIIIIGHT be stalking someone on deviantART... who makes an awesome IZ comic... and I might be stalking her as we speak... But anyways! :D Moving on!**

**My other excuse is that I didn't quite know what I wanted to do with this chapter. I have it all figured out now...**

Blue's voice rings out from the group. "He deserves one last chance."

As head turn towards him in shock. They're talking about Vaati here– "last chance" seems _completely_ out of the question! "What?" Green says in a voice that's barely over a whisper.

"I said–"

"I heard what you said!" Green's so overcome with emotions that he almost shouts. He takes a deep breath, trying to calm himself. He really doesn't want to scare these guys... his new friends. "It's just... Blue... I appreciate what you've done for me, really... but after all the _sh*t_ Vaati's put me through, I don't think 'one last chance' is an option."

"He's right, Blue," Vio says matter-of-factly. "Even if Vaati _did_ accept our offer, how do we know we can trust him?"

Blue frowns. "I know, but–"

Green cuts in, suddenly tired of hearing Blue's voice, "No. Last. _Chance._"

Blue is silenced for a moment, before mumbling, "He still has good in him..."

"_Hey, I'm Vaati."_

"_And don't let me catch you near him again!"_

"_And __**that's**__ for scaring me."_

"_You like her, don't you?"_

"_You don't have to say it. I can tell."_

"_Your life is a wreck __**because**__ of me. Go. It's pointless for you to stay here."_

"_I-I-I–"_

"_You missed your chance."_

Suddenly everything just fits together. That was him then. He's always been protective. He doesn't like to see Green hurt. He was jealous. He pays close attention to Green. He didn't want to hurt him more than he had to. Everything was falling about and he knew it. This is him _now_.

And that's all he can be.

"Maybe... just... _one _last chance."

Vio and Shadow stare at him, probably thinking, _What kind of drugs are you on, Green?_ Green turns back to them and says, "Everyone deserves a bit of kindness, right? For all we know, Vaati might be hurting just as much as we are. We'll never know unless we try, right?"

Shadow's expression softens first, and he sighs. "Alright... but if it doesn't work, we're going with my plan!"

Vio quirks an eyebrow at him. "Which is...?"

"Get everyone to see the big picture! Just straight out tell them what they're doing and– _boom!_– power gone."

Red pouts. "Why don't we just do that first?"

Shadow rolls his eyes. "Because the loonies over here won't let me." He points to Blue and Green, grinning.

Blue gives him a sharp glare. "Well at least _I_ got my way."

Shadow frowns, crossing his arms over his chest. "Suck-up," he mutters.

Blue growls. "Why I should–"

Red kindly cuts in with a quiet, "Guys..."

Finally, they've arrived. The courtyard. Vaati's sitting at a table with Groose, Ruto, and Midna. Green glances back at his friends, seeing Blue wrinkle his nose in disgust at the table. He takes a deep breath and steps forward.

He can do this.

He notices some people staring at him.

He can do this.

It seems now that Groose and Midna see him, while Ruto is nudging him gently.

He can do this. He just has to believe in himself.

Vaati looks up and meets Green's eyes. And that brown– that deep, honeysuckle brown just _engulfs_ Green.

He can't do this.

But still, he steps forward and says, cautiously, "Hey Vaati."

Vaati's eyes narrow half-heartedly. So far so good. "What is it, Green?" He pouts, looking off to the side. "And make it quick– I don't have time for this."

Green is about to say something– something along the lines of, _"Can we be friends again?"_ When it hits him.

_I've already tried that._ He can't just give into Vaati like this... it's not right!

But Blue is right. Vaati still has kindness in him, deep down. It just needs to brought forth, one step at a time.

He reaches forward, holding his hand out. "Truce?"

Vaati's eyes grow wide. "_What?_"

"Vaati, listen. Neither of us is going to win this. I'm not going to give into you, and I'm not going to come running back to you again. The only way we can truly settle this is to just call it a day and–"

Two hands dash forward and shove Green to the ground. Green sits up, looking up to the group in front of him. Groose is standing, a scowl planted firmly on his face. Vaati rushes up in almost a frenzy, a slight gasp escaping him. Then his eyes narrow.

"The answer is no." He takes a few steps forward, placing himself directly in front of Green. "After all the crap you've put me through?" His eyes become brown slits. "I don't think so."

Green just stares up at Vaati in shock. _He's won. What can I do? He's right here, above me, taunting me, and what can I do about it?_

((try.))

An all too familiar voice rings through Green's head. A forest flashes into his vision, accompanied by a rope bridge and a... saw?

_What does it all **mean**?_

Green hardly thinks before bringing himself to his feet again. Suddenly his face is inches away from Vaati's. Vaati's eyes stay the same, but his cheeks turn pink. "After all the crap _I_ put you through? I think you have things a _little_ backwards here! You're the one who's been ruining _my_ life! And not just mine–" he throws his hands up in the air, "–everybody's! And all because they let you push them around! I'll _never_ understand why they give you that sort of power! And all because they don't wanna be pushed around by you! Heck, by following you around like this, _they already are_!" The last three words end up as a yell that reaches all ends of the courtyard, reaching all ears.

Groose goes wide-eyed and sits down. Midna looks at Vaati, disgusted.

Ruto is the first to speak, standing up and shrieking, "So I've been getting on your good side for _nothing_?"

Vaati looks at the ground, wide-eyed. He pulls at his hair, eyes flickering to red. "I-I-I... I-I don't–"

"I don't even want to _hear _it!" she hisses, turning her palm out towards Vaati as she walks away.

Midna stands up next, glaring as Vaati as she walks away, muttering something darkly.

Groose is the last to stand, punching Vaati hard in the arm before stomping off. Vaati hisses in pain, holding his arm gently.

Tense whispers overwhelm the courtyard. You can see Vaati's power slipping out from underneath him. He stares at the pavement with panicked red eyes.

Sometimes, the right words can change _everything_.

Well, those were definitely the right words.

"Not so tough now, huh, Vaati?" Green hears Shadow say.

Vaati looks up, his eyes bright red as he narrows his eyes at them. "How dare you...?"

Green takes a few steps backward, rejoining himself with his friends. "Easy," he says. "We just did. You're a lot weaker than you think you are, Vaati."

Vaati's eyes soften, fading back into brown.

Red shuffles his feet, looking at Vaati warily. "You could be good... if you wanted to," he says simply. "It'll just take some time."

Vaati clenches his jaw. "I'm _not_ bad."

Vio frowns. "Hate to burst your bubble, but yes; yes you are."

Vaati looks back to the ground. "Fine! Be _good_ if you want to! I'd r-rather be _bad_ if it means staying away from all of you!" He gives them one last glare before turning away, fuming as he walks away.

The group is silent for a moment, until finally, after what seems like an eon, Blue says, "We did it..." A lopsided smile suddenly appears on his face, his eyes widening a bit. "We really did it!" His smile erupts, taking over his whole face. He slips his hands under Red's arms, and without warning, picks the shorter boy up, spinning him around. Red shrieks, gripping to Blue's shoulders for support.

"Excuse me?" Vio says, looking at Blue quizzically. "Weren't you the one who wanted to give Vaati 'one last chance'?"

Blue smiles at him, setting Red back on solid ground. "Oh, come on, Vio! Even I have to be pretty happy about it! Everything is okay again!"

Green smiles, too. "You've gotta say Vio– he's right," he chuckles, "again."

Vio just rolls his eyes. "Oh, whatever."

Blue smirks at him. "What's wrong, know-it-all?" he says teasingly. "You upset you're not right?"

Vio tries to frown, Green thinks it's apparent, but he miserably fails. "I am not _always_ right!" His smirk grows. "Just most of the time."

Green chuckles again as his friends continue on with their silly discussion. This was a wild ride, wasn't it? Full of twists and turns and maybe a few drives off of steep ledges. But it was all worth it– all for this.

For friends. _Real_ friends, the kind that will never die out. Yes, he can tell just by looking at them.

This is going to be a wild ride.

_Things started off terrifyingly SCARY. Sometimes I wondered how I had gotten myself into this MESS, thinking how everything I had believed in was GONE. I'm SORRY for not seeing what was in front of me, whether it was an obvious crush or a batch of true friends. Nothing will ever be the SAME again, that's for sure. But I'm glad I don't have to stay by his side anymore– SILENT as he lashes out on others. This has ABSOLUTELY been the worst– and the best– experience of my life. I've been STUPID– but things turned out okay. So now I'm BACK and stronger than ever. This has been WILD, and something tells me it's gonna stay that way._

_I'm just glad you were there to BREAK MY FALL._

**AN- WOW! Green's storyline is DONE! Whew! I am so happy about this!**

**The rest of the chapters are MOSTLY filler... so as far as I'm concerned, this story is DONE. Yesssss! **


	47. Red ll Visible

**AN- Hey look I decided to get off of my lazy ass and finish this story.**

**Also, I have a laptop. :P**

Pencil meets paper, and Red quirks an eyebrow, trying to recall the basic features—the narrowed eyes, the fluffy-looking hair, the lopsided grin…

He smiles. History is only half over and he's already finished all of his homework. Free time is great, and it's the reason he always keeps his sketch book with him. _After all, it's perfect for when I get inspiration like this._

"What's that?" he hears from his left side. Red hadn't noticed Ralph was looking at his drawing.

"Oh," Red says shyly. "I-it's just something I drew… I-I'm not very—"

Ralph cuts in. "It's really good."

Red's face lights up. "You really think so?" _No one's ever said that before… besides Diana and Xavier, that is…_ _but they're my family—or like it, anyways—so of course they'd say that._

He's so deep into thought that he jumps a little when Ralph says, "Yeah." He nods and smiles. "I'm not very talented with that sort of stuff." He looks back to Red. "But you draw very well."

Red feels his cheeks heat up. "Th-thanks."

He jumps again when Agitha, who was looking back over her shoulder at the pair, says, "It looks really pretty…" Her expression turns thoughtful. "You thought of adding any butterflies?" She smiles brightly. "They would look really nice with this."

Red shakes his head. "N-no, not really… But thank you." _Maybe I'll draw some butterflies later and give it to Agitha… I'm sure she'd like that._

This time, he only slightly jumps when he hears Shadow speak. "That's a drawing of Blue, isn't it?"

Red blushes a deep scarlet, giving his friend a nervous smile. "Darn… how did you know?"

Shadow chuckles. "Dude, it's so obvious! You were staring at the page with such intensity, I thought your eyes were going to burn holes into the paper!"

Red giggles in return. "That wouldn't have ended well—my whole sketch book would've caught fire!" _How is it that my friends can make the worst case scenarios seem funny?_

"A-_hem_!" Red almost shrieks as he hears Mr. Strudwick clear his throat. This makes Agitha giggle silently—placing a hand over her mouth as he stifles the laughter to a mute. "Red; Shadow, is there a problem here?"

"N-no sir, not at all!" says Red, trying not to smile. The corners of his mouth twitch unbearably.

"I thought so," Mr. Strudwick replies sternly. "Now don't talk in my class." He walks back to his desk, straightening his orange-brown tie.

Red turns to Shadow and grins. Shadow grins back, and it's the sort of wild, maniac, Cheshire cat grin that only Shadow can conjure up. From the sidelines, Ralph and Agitha are grinning, too.

And with that, Red turns back to his sketch book.

_It's good to be visible._

_Looking back, all I wanted was to be LOVED. It took plenty of blood, sweat, and TEARS, but finally I found something truly worthwhile—friends. I always thought that TODAY would be just like yesterday, and tomorrow would be the same, but you all proved me wrong. My journey was full of a lot of firsts—including my first CRUSH. Things just started looking up, started getting BETTER, all because of him. But my heart was MELTY—all the feelings just dripped off and out into the open. If this was a call, I'd just press REDIAL to experience it all again. I hope you guys feel that way, TOO. I really feel like a HERO after all of this, but I don't need any superpowers to feel happy. I'm VISIBLE, and I like it that way._

_I'm just glad you were there to BREAK MY FALL._


	48. Blue ll Brave

**AN- Hi, I'm back! :D**

It seems that ever since Vaati was dethroned, people have been paying more attention to Red. Especially girls.

This bothers Blue. Why shouldn't it? Red _is _bisexual, after all. His irritation is totally justified. But he's not _jealous_. Why should he be? He has what they don't. If anything, _they_ should be jealous. The way those girl stare at Red with googley eyes as he walks down the halls… it's stupid, but he's not _jealous._

Still, he feels his blood boil when Red cries out, "Oh! Agitha!" after school. Red runs up to the blond girl, taking a folded piece of paper out of his pocket. He hands it to her, beaming. "Here, I drew this for you."

Agitha takes the paper, eyes wide. Unfolding it, she gives Red a smile that would make most guys melt. "Red, I love it!" she coos. She looks back down to the paper, smile bright. "You're really good at drawing butterflies." His sexuality aside, Blue must admit that Agitha _is_ pretty… despite her weird bug obsession.

Still, this whole exchange makes him feel sick. "C'mon, Red," he says, cutting their conversation short. "Let's go."

Red looks back to him and smiles. And while _most_ guys wouldn't agree with him, Red's smile is the one that makes Blue melt. (And personally, he's _glad_ they don't agree with him. Red is _his_ game.) "Okay!" says Red. He turns to wave to Agitha, who waves back, still smiling her never-as-good-as-Red's smile.

As Red reaches Blue's side, Blue reaches over, grabbing Red's hand protectively. This makes Red smile. Blue is content.

…That is, until he spots the group of girls ogling Red from across the hall. They whisper and giggle and snarl at Blue. Blue clenches his jaw.

Oh, that is _it_.

As they walk by the girls, he stops, grabbing Red's arm and yanking him close. Red lets out a yelp as Blue turns them towards the girls, smirking.

"Back off, b*tches. He's mine."

The looks on their faces are just priceless. He turns away, dragging a shocked and flustered Red down the hall with him.

That has to at least be candidate for the bravest thing Blue's ever done. And he's done a _lot_ of brave things.

_It all started with a simple GLANCE. To be honest, I had gotten used to being ALONE, and I didn't think things would change. As it turns out, being wrong is worse than any other kind of PAIN. But hey, it's not all bad. I PROMISE to never leave a single one of you in the dust, no matter how much you get on my nerves. I'm giving you guys all my HEART, and you will NEVER screw me over if you value your limbs. …Okay, fine. I'll TRY to be a little less violent… MAYBE. …Oh, who the hell am I kidding? ANYTHING for you guys. I've never been more BRAVE._

_I'm just glad you were there to BREAK MY FALL._

**AN- Damn Blue was fun to write for.**


	49. Vio ll Racing

The more time goes on, the more Vio begins to recognize his friends' individual traits. Each of them seems to have some sort of positive attribute they can easily be identified by.

_Green, for example, is honest._

"Good morning," he says as he in front of Vio in second period math.

"Hello, Green," says Vio, looking up from his history homework. "How are you on this _delightful_ morning?" The sarcasm is clear in Vio's voice, and Green smiles.

"Good," he replies. His voice drops down to a whisper. "I'm gonna talk to my parents today. After school."

Vio feels his grin fade, and he keeps his voice soft as he speaks to Green. "Are you scared?"

Green nods, and Vio can see the anxiety in his eyes. "Yeah. I'm really worried that they'll start yelling again."

Vio gives him a lopsided smile. "Hey. At least you have half a say in the matter."

Green frowns. "It sure doesn't feel that way."

_On the other hand, Red is kind._

"Dammit!" Blue gasps as Red dabs disinfectant on his wound. Only three weeks into the school year and Blue has already gotten himself into his _second_ fist fight of the year. "Stupid Groose!" Blue hisses, slamming his free fist against the nurse's desk. Red jumps slightly. "He just _had _to get in my way."

Red offers the smallest smile. " He's not that bad. Besides, it's not _completely_ his fault. . ."

Blue throws him a nasty glare, which Red takes with stride.

"_Who_ was the one to throw the first punch, again. . . ?"

Blue protests with, "B-but, that was him, and—"

Red cuts him off by leaning forward and pressing his lips to Blue's. From the sidelines, Shadow snickers. Vio smirks and glances to the side, noticing how Green looks away, embarrassed by the whole ordeal.

Red leans back again, breaking the kiss. He looks back to Blue's arm again, dabbing a cottonball with disinfectant and continuing where he left off. Blue looks away, muttering something under his breath as he turns an odd shade of pink.

Vio shakes his head, amused. "Red," he says, "one day that boy will be the death of you."

Red smiles. "Good," he says. "I always wanted to die by my lover's side."

_Blue was shockingly generous._

Home Economics class was delving deeper and deeper into the sewing unit. At this particular moment, the class is busy making little plush animals. Vio figures he'll just give all of his to Katie—she's a plushie hoarder as it is.

He glances in Blue's direction. Surprisingly, Blue is far ahead of most of the class. This is his third plush this week—Vio swears he's been making one per class. Right now he's sewing an ear onto a red cat. Vio eyes it oddly, then moves his eyes back up to Blue. It doesn't take long until Blue looks back. Vio easily deciphers his facial expression as, _What is it?_

Vio glances back down at the cat. _Is that for. . . ?_

Blue smiles slightly, and knowing Blue, that means, _Yeah. Red._

Vio smirks, but there's a genuine smile down there. _A little thank you present for that kiss, I assume?_

This time, Blue forgets to keep his thoughts inside of his head. "Oh, _shut up_!" he shrieks, glaring daggers at Vio.

Mrs. Tiff is behind him in an instant, and her expression is _not _friendly. As if Blue didn't already have _enough_ detention to deal with.

_Nice job, genius,_ Vio thinks, and it doesn't slip by Blue.

_Oops?_ reads his face, but Vio knows he's really thinking, _Just shut the hell up._

_Zelda has a surprisingly good sense of humor._

"Okay, okay," says Shadow, leaning over to catch the blond girl's attention. "I've got one. Why are ducks so funny?" He takes no time in revealing the answer. "Because they're always quacking jokes!"

Blue and Green groan in unison. Vio shakes his head, ignoring how the ends of his lips twitch, telling him to smile. Red forces a smile, but doesn't say anything. Zelda, however, just rolls her eyes, not wanting to give Shadow any form of amusement.

But Shadow doesn't give up. "I _will_ get you to smile," he insists. He's silent for a moment, until he speaks up again. "Okay. Why did the aardvark cross the road?"

Zelda frowns. "To beat up the idiot telling jokes about him?"

Green and Blue laugh, and even Vio can't hold back a small snicker. Red giggles, holding a hand over his mouth to stifle it. And Shadow admits defeat, smiling and shaking his head at the ground.

_And Shadow, of course, is loyal._

"You know, Shadow," Vio says as Shadow pours some liquid into a test tube, "after all I put you through, I would've expected you to be through with me."

Shadow glances up from his work to offer Vio a small, confident, smile. "Aw, c'mon, Vi. You know I'm not like that."

Vio smiles, too, feeling his heart thump again. "I know, I know."

A few silent minutes pass, and finally Vio decides to ask a question that's been on his mind as of late. "So what am I?"

Shadow looks back up, confused. "What?"

Vio racks his mind for the right words. "Like. . . you're loyal, Green's honest, Red's kind, Blue's generous, and Zelda makes us all laugh—even if she doesn't mean to. You each have some sort of attribute that makes you all. . . special to me. So what do I have?"

Shadow smiles again. "Easy. You have the best in all of us." It's not nonchalant and reassuring, but gentle and a bit. . . haughty? As if he's not telling Vio this, but to someone else, bragging about how great his boyfriend is. This is how Vio knows he's speaking the truth.

"Way to sound cliché, Shadow," he murmurs, and Shadow's smile turns into a stuck-up little smirk. Why, the little bastard. . . ! Vio could smack him silly if he didn't love him so much.

Still, his heart is racing.

_To think a simple BOOKCASE brought along this whole disaster. Not that I'm complaining, mind you. It was, dare I say, kind of CUTE, the way things came about. . . Or maybe it's just completely cliché to say that TOGETHER, we make the perfect team. I was KISSED, shoved aside, taken for granted, and mentally abused, and I'll think I'm still out of my MIND when I say this—I felt like a complete ZOMBIE before you four came along. It took a LONG time, but I'm beginning to feel like I own my body again. There's a warning BELL still telling me this is the wrong way to go, but I'm SURE I can see the finish line ahead, and I'm RACING towards it._

_I'm just glad you were there to BREAK MY FALL._


	50. Shadow ll Deep

**AN- I am warning you now that you are REQUIRED to read the author's note at the bottom. If you have never read an author's note, here's your time to start.**

Shadow has never seen; or rather, heard; a hallway so quiet. That may come as a surprise, considering how busy both of Shadow's parents are. Actually, he's been in quiet hallways plenty of times. But this hallway is dead silent. Nothing makes a sound. No wind, no birds, no rustling, no footsteps. Just a girl; blonde hair, dressed fully in green; sitting on a bench, humming to herself. _Fado,_ Shadow recalls. _Her name is Fado. She's in my history class._

So technically it _isn't _silent, but it _feels_ silent. There's something about Fado—the way she sits there, eyes closed, swaying slightly—that gives off a strange feeling of silence, despite her humming. A feeling of accepted silence. Shadow has been standing here for a few minutes, and not once has Fado opened her eyes. She knows he's there, Shadow has decided. She knows he's watching, and it looks like she's okay with that. And while she's certainly not helping Shadow break his bad habit of eavesdropping, it's intriguing. He could walk home from school, but as this point, he honestly doesn't want to.

It's just… calm, is all. And with how crazy Shadow's life is—move after move, his first boyfriend, and red-eyed demons—he's happy to have some calmness. It's nice, and it's making him forget about his homework, his house keys, his ca—

"Dammit!" he mumbles in a sharp whisper. "I have to feed Phantom and Gambit!" He turns around, straightens his messenger bag, and starts to make a dash towards the exit. It's disheartening to cut off the silence, but—

"Shadow." It's hardly a murmur, but Shadow hears it clear as day. He turns around slowly, but surely, to meet blue eyes as clear as the sea. Those eyes bore right through him, making his stomach tumble downwards. He tries to speak, but the words are caught in his throat again.

"You're dating Vio, now," she says, matter-of-factly.

Shadow doesn't speak, just nods.

Fado smiles, knowingly. "All because of that note, huh?"

Shadow hardly questions it, just says, "Yeah," shakily, then turns on his heel and moves on.

He almost swears he heard Fado say, "My work here is done."

So he won't question how she knew about the note.

Deep down, something tells him he already knows.

_I've never had a FRIEND that I could trust. So just the mere fact that all of this happened… well, it's a GREAT thing. The bad times are still ECHOING in my head, but I CAN'T let them get to me. I'll just carry on—write myself a NOTE and get over it. After the first week of school, I thought to myself, "Did all of that really happen in SEVEN days?" It did, and things WILL continue to be crazy. AFTER all we've been through, we have to stick together. …Oh, and Vio? I never thought I'd value someone as much as I value AIR. Something DEEP in my gut is telling me this isn't over._

_I'm just glad you were there to BREAK MY FALL._

**IMPORTANT AUTHOR'S NOTE! PLEASE READ!**

**I…**

**I did it.**

**It's done.**

**Oh my gosh.**

**OH MY GOSH!**

**I know what you're gonna say—"Why did THIS take so long?" Well… it didn't. I was having trouble figuring out how exactly I was going to pull this chapter off. I wrote it today during math class, and once I finished, I just kinda stared at it, thinking, **_**This is it. It's done.**_

**That being said, school started. Funny thing is, I'm writing a fic about high school, when I wasn't even in high school myself. The Link's high school more resembles my middle school than it does my high school. To each their own.**

**OKAY OKAY OKAY HERE'S THE IMPORTANT PART. I cannot thank you all ENOUGH. Obviously I can't go through and thank each and every one of you, because we'd be here all day. BUT, if you reviewed, I love you more than most. I could not have done this without you. You guys are my fans, my muses, my inspiration, my motivation. You all help me so much without even knowing it. Every review, favorite, watch, PM, is a **_**blessing**_**.**

**SPEAKING OF REVIEWS. I have a challenge for you guys. If you are reading this right now—REVIEW. I don't care what it is—it doesn't have to be long, doesn't have to be special. NO ONE CARES AS LONG AS YOU REVIEW. I know there are over a hundred of you, and if enough of you review… well…**

**I can reach 300 reviews.**

**PLEASE, guys. I'm having a great day today, and the one thing that would make it perfect would be reaching 300. Please, please, PLEASE. It's as simple as scrolling down and typing, "hey I read your story and I really liked it." Just take a few minutes out of your life; that's all I ask.**

**I know I'm a review whore, but we're all something, right?**

**Thank you all again. I love EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU, and I can't wait to see you all (in a long, long time) for the sequel!**

**Luv ya bunches! MWAH!**


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